


Of Fangs and Pearls

by MadameScarletPhantom



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Werewolf, Lesbian Vampires, Multi, Romance, Vampires
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-11
Updated: 2016-10-31
Packaged: 2018-05-13 05:28:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 23
Words: 49,461
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5696749
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MadameScarletPhantom/pseuds/MadameScarletPhantom
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>She was born into slavery, a nameless, hopeless child. She worked in the mines, bringing forth beautiful, magic-laden gems for the monster-class. Then, one day, Rose Quartz, Duchess of the Vampire Court, saved her. </p><p>Monster AU based off of Lauren Zuke's Boooniverse. Expect Vampires, Werewolves, Stitched together beings, and loads of corrupt monsters!</p><p>Trying to figure out an upload schedule that works for me; sorry about the slow updates.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Slavery

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Lauren Zuke's "Boooniverse" AU](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/168376) by Lauren Zuke. 



> A/N: This AU all started with Lauren Zuke’s posts on Tumblr and Twitter back around Halloween of 2015. Since then, many fan artists and fan fiction authors have offered their takes on ‘Vampearl,’ ‘Weremethyst,’ and ‘Garnetstein.’ Lately, I have been thinking about the AU and how much I love it. I might be late to the show, but I wanted to produce something that could go with the ‘Boooniverse…’ even if it is, at current, January of 2016. 
> 
> I would like to dedicate this fiction to the memory of a friend. You were the best Rose Quartz cosplayer ever. Also, I would like to dedicate this to my girlfriend, who always seems to know just what to say.
> 
> This story contains some Pearl/Rose, Pearl/Amethyst, Rose/Greg, Ruby/Sapphire and hints of Pearl/Garnet. Please read and review. Your thoughts and critiques are very important to me. Thank you!

I had been born a slave without a name. The moment I was birthed, I was taken from my mother. Wailing, screaming, cold, I was treated as a piece of meat. Slavers bartered over me. I was sold for a few bronze coins at a market one winter’s day. 

For years, I was forced to labor underground without seeing the sun. I, along with my fellow slaves, were used to harvest the gems that held magic powers far beyond our comprehension. It was not until I was nearly fifteen that I was told, by one of the older slaves, what we were really touching. The Gems fed into the power of monsters--vampires, werewolves, zombies...other creatures that I could not name but knew of. Creatures that bought us for food, as play things. 

Underground, it was impossible to tell the passage of time. Only a half-broken watch I had found once allowed me to keep track of days, of months, of years. I tinkered with it at night, while my owner allowed my fellow slaves and me to rest. Eventually, I managed to get it working at full capacity. I learned the numbers on the clock face from one of the girls that had once worked as a maid in a wealthy house. She was kind. I learned much from her--numbers and letters. I could read and write by the time I was around seventeen, which was considered odd for a slave working below the crust of the Earth. I treasured my special abilities. 

Perhaps it would have been easier for me to have lived my full life there, underground, unaware of the sun, for the moment I was dragged out of the mines and saw it in its full, bright glory, I was in love. It warmed me to my very core, in a way I had never been warmed before. I wanted nothing more than to bask in the light; like a cat, I wanted to sleep in the hot rays. It was summer, I was told, by one of the other slaves as I was placed into her pen. 

“What is happening?” I asked, blinking up at the strong light. My skin was paler than pale; I looked like a ghost. Years of working in the mines had done that to me. After examining my hands, I looked at the younger slave with whom I had been enclosed. 

She was a short, stout thing with long, pale hair and dark skin. Obviously, she had never been underground. This confused me--weren’t all slaves diggers and miners? No, I told myself; some worked for the rich, or for the monsters that we mined for to begin with. 

“Yer being sold,” the girl said with a half-hearted shrug. “Didn’t you hear? I guess not; yer from underground, eh?” She grabbed my left hand, looking at it with a smirk. “Lookit how pale you are. Someone could mistake you for a vamp, easy. ‘Course, if you were a vamp, you wouldn’t be a slave.” She licked her lips, letting go of my hand. “Your master--dumb prick that he is--went and died, leaving all of you without an owner. Yer being sold now. Me, too. I worked above ground, polishing those damned gems for the monsters to pick through.” 

She was talkative. I frowned a little, rubbing at the bridge of my long nose. I had never seen my reflection, but some of the male slaves had told me I was beautiful. One of the females as well, and I was close to her until a cave in crushed her spine. She did not live long after that. 

Grinning, the girl looked around at the pen we were in. I was taller than her by at least two heads, maybe a little more. I could see more than her; I could see over the top of the pen, at least. The slavers were talking amongst themselves, occasionally throwing glances back my way. I ducked down, deciding to sit rather than be stared at. 

“So….” the girl said with a yawn. She stretched her arms out over her head. “What’s yer name?”

I cringed a little. “I do not have one. I was told that I was sold long before my mother was even aware she had given birth.” 

“Ah, that’s the pits.” 

“What of you?” I asked. 

The girl snorted. “My last master, before this one, called me Amethyst. After the rocks he sold, specially cut and all o’ that.” I nodded, remembering the purple gems from geodes I had broken open before. They were beautiful things, all glimmering and light in a world full of darkness. 

Despite myself, I managed a smile. “It suits you. Amethyst, I mean.” 

“Yeah, well. I didn’t exactly have a choice in the matter, now, did I?” she spat, but grinned back at me. 

As the hours passed by, so did potential buyers. The man running the outside shop we were holed up in poked at us and prodded us with his cane through the polished bars of the pen. If we went anywhere near the lip of the cage, we were shocked back by some sort of magic embedded in the metal. It was the same if we attempted to grab the cane to stop him from harming us. I ended up with more than my fair share of bruises and blisters from both the cane and the magic. Eventually, Amethyst and I gave up, allowing ourselves to be hit. 

When night came, I worried that the sun would never shine again. I closed my eyes, tears making them feel heavy. “Amethyst,” I said softly. “I need sleep.” 

“Me too. But I’ll watch over ya.” She let me lay my head in her lap, and stroked my hair as I drifted off. Before I completely lost consciousness, I heard her whisper, softly, “Good night, pretty one.” 

The next day, the sun was harsh. It was hot and I labored in my breathing. The slaver offered us water, but only enough to keep our throats from being completely parched. I swallowed my saliva as much as I could, but that ran dry. 

Amethyst held up a pebble she had found on the floor of our pen. “Here. Suck on it. It helps. I dunno why, but it does.” She then popped the thing into my mouth. I suckled on it like a child suckling at her mother’s breast. It helped to build up some saliva, which I thankfully swallowed. 

“Is there a second one, for you?” I asked. Amethyst shook her head. Quickly, I took the pebble from my lips and pressed it to hers. “You can’t take care of me and not yourself, Amethyst.” She grinned a little, sideways, and took the little rock into her mouth. Her lips were plump and lovely. Soft. My fingers strayed a little, touching them longer than I should have. That’s when she tenderly kissed my hand. I flinched, and pulled back. 

I regret, to this day, the look on her face. She looked so hurt, so afraid that she had done something wrong. Quickly, I leaned in, kissing those lovely, lush lips for just a moment. Just enough to bandage the worry in her mind, easing it. We were friends. We could be more, if we were sold together. I wanted to be more. My life had been such a lonely existence until then. I felt as though I had truly found a kindred spirit. 

The slave shop was open for weeks. There was, I learned through slaves passing by, to be a big auction of my former master’s estate. All of his slaves, mines and lands were to be sold off to the highest bidders. Piece by piece, we would be separated and taken apart. 

I slept uneasily, Amethyst watching over me as always. Around midnight each night, we switched spots. Neither of us really knew what we were protecting the other from. Perhaps the inevitable moment of being separated. Perhaps from rogue monsters that sometimes killed slaves. We did not know, but it did not truly matter. 

The night before the auction, I ran my fingers through Amethyst’s light hair. It was such an odd color--a very pale lavender. I loved it. She slept, a frown on her plump face, and snored a little. I leaned down to smell of her long, flowing mane, and was not disappointed. She smelled of an odd combination of sandalwood and the Earth after a rainstorm. It was smooth and comforting; I wanted to hold that smell to me forever. Lightly, I kissed her ear, then her neck. My light pecks woke her up. I placed my long, slender forefinger to her plush lips, shushing her for the moment. I just wanted to take her in, to be with her for that moment. 

Her eyes were wide--as wide as geodes--and sparkled with the stars above. There was a stirring in my chest that I had never felt before. My heart raced, faster and faster until it felt as though it would explode. I took my finger away from her lips, just for a moment, and kissed her. 

When I pulled back, there were tears in my eyes. Tears of happiness. “I love you,” I whispered softly. “Go to sleep.” She grinned up at me, all cocky and pleased, then drifted off to sleep again. 

The next morning, she was ripped from me, sold at dawn to a very large man and his brothers. All four of them had gems pushed into their skin--monsters. I screamed for her, holding the bars of the cage even as the magic within them shocked me and rocked me to my core. “Amethyst!” I called until my voice was hoarse. The slaver hit me with his cane, once, twice, and a third time, but still, I screamed for the woman I had grown to love in such a short time. Eventually, he knocked me out cold, my body hitting the floor of the pen before I could tell what had happened. 

When I awoke, I was on the slave block. Two men held me upright. My eye was bruised, swollen shut. I gasped a little, shivering from the cold. It had become night while I was unconscious, and they had stripped me nude. 

“As you can see, she is accustomed to a life underground. Do not let her weak appearance fool you--this slave is a strong and valuable worker!” the slaver said, his voice slimey. I glanced his way, just for a moment. Yellow teeth and tongue spat flecks of greasy saliva. I hated him. Every inch of me hated that man, that seller that had taken my Amethyst from me. 

I screamed. 

The crowd gathered around the block gasped in shock. Many of them were wearing finery. Silk clothing from the far East had become the new rage, it seemed. I ignored them and screamed again. I raged against the two men holding me, trying to hit them by any means necessary. They simply laughed; they were brutes. I was too weak to fight them. 

“Is she mad?” someone from the crowd called. “She seems mad.” 

“No no,” the seller hissed now, striking me with his cane. “She just needs to be broken in a bit! Those that work underground are a little more...thoughtful...than those that had been worked in a field or in a home! A few good whippings and she should be right as rain.” He grabbed my face, going nose to nose with me. “Isn’t that right, little one?” His voice was a hiss--a threat. 

I stammered for a moment, trying to say something--anything--to the man, but instead decided to spit in his greasy face. He reeled back as though slapped. With one fluid movement, he hit me across the face with the steel head of his cane. Stars lept into my vision, stunning me. 

“Stop hitting her,” a stern yet beautiful voice said from the back of the crowd. I looked up, my vision still blurry, and I watched as a very tall, voluptuous woman walked forward. The people parted for her as though they were a sea; she walked gracefully down the aisle they had made for her. 

The woman held a soft smile on her painted pink lips. Her eyes were black, though not empty. They shimmered light the night sky, full of stars. I stared at her for a long time before I heard the gasps of the people around her. They started to flee. For the life of me, I could not understand why anyone would run from such a beautiful woman. 

Then she opened her mouth to speak, and fangs flashed in the torchlight. My eyes trailed down from her mouth, ashamed to stare, and noted the pink gem set in her stomach. Her dress was open there, where her belly button should have been, in a star shape. I shivered. She was drawing closer, step by step, and I could see my ragged reflection thrown back at me in the faucets of her gem. I had been a miner long enough to know that it was some sort of quartz. 

“Madame Quartz,” the slaver stammered, offering a weak, fearful smile. “Ah. This one isn’t good for you. She’s too thin, too--” 

The woman named after the gem in her stomach smiled pleasantly up at the man. He stepped off of his podium, swallowing hard. I heard the gulp and watched as his Adam’s Apple bobbed up and down in his throat. When he was on the ground, standing before this woman, this monster, she towered over him. I could feel the men holding me shiver and shake. 

“I think I know which slaves are good for me,” she said softly. Her voice was the wind, the soft glow of the sun. I felt calm for no good reason. She was a monster that was interested in me. A monster that could very well snap me in half and use my thin body to pick at her fangs. She leaned away from the man to look at me, and only then did the fear creep back into my veins. 

I looked away. Or, rather, I tried to. She reached out and touched my face with her cold hands. She rubbed her thumb over my lips, lost in thought. Carefully, with what I could tell was a lot of effort, she raised my head so I had to look at her. She could have ripped my head off with that movement--I felt that much power in her body when she touched me. 

“My name is Rose,” she said softly, speaking only to me. “What is your name?” 

“I…” I whispered. The men let go of me, stepping back. I fell to the ground, gasping. 

“When was the last time she ate anything?”  
The slaver swallowed. “That...I am not in charge of that. I would have to ask my staff...I’m sure it was--”

“It has been three days,” I said. Swallowing hard, I looked up at Rose Quartz. “And one day without proper water.” The man marveled at me, marveled that the slave knew and understood numbers and time. Then his face reddened. He growled, opening his mouth to say something, but I glared at him. Something about this monster before me made me stronger, made me adventurous. Even if she killed me, what did it matter? I had lost my Amethyst. I had lost the one person I truly cared for. The devil take me, I did not care what happened to me. 

A hiss escaped Rose’s plump lips. At first, I thought that sound was meant for me. I looked up, ready to face my fate. She was, however, glaring at the man who was attempting to sell me. She snapped her fingers at him. “I will take her. What is her asking price?”

“Uh...for you, mi’lady! For you, she is a gift.” 

Rose smirked. “I thought so. Come with me, little one.” She smiled down at me, offering me her hand. I took it, standing on weak legs. “Let’s get you something to eat and something to drink. Oh! And some clothing. You poor thing.” She leaned in, smelling sweetly of the flower she was named for, and kissed my throat.

An unwanted shiver raced up my spine. I could not help it; I collapsed into the arms of Rose Quartz. Little did I know, that was exactly what she wanted of me.


	2. Rose Quartz

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pearl comes to terms with living with Rose Quartz, and meets two incredible witches.

Rose Quartz lived in a marble castle, deep in the forest of the neighboring kingdom. It was a lush forest, but even greater still was her personal gardens. By night, she tended to all of the flowers and bushes herself; she had no servants. In the very center of the main garden was a beautiful, stone fountain that rained crisp, clean water down upon a small pond holding jewel colored fish. 

There was a long walkway leading up to the castle, paved with marble and flecks of silver--pure silver. Bushes cut to look like lions lined either side of this walkway, as though to guard the castle. A real lion, dyed pink to match his master’s stone and hair, lounged near the pond, one paw in the water to bat at any fish stupid enough to come close enough. 

He raised his head slightly, looking and sniffing. He stood up, stretching, as his master appeared at the castle gates. With a nod of her head, the gates opened as though by magic. There was something--someone, the lion realized--wrapped up in a long, black fur cloak in his master’s arms. Sniffing again, he lazily moved forward until he was standing beside Rose Quartz. Gently, he took the stranger’s limb hand in his mouth, licking the fingers tenderly, one by one. 

Rose laughed a little. “Enough of that, Lion. This is our new companion. You will treat her with respect, and protect her just as you protect me. Is that understood?” 

The lion let out a huff of air, then darted off into the garden to hunt the deer that lived in the hedge maze. Rose watched him, shifting her ward in her arms. “It is almost time for you to wake up,” she purred, kissing the pale skin of the slave she had just been given. In the darkness of the night, the slave’s skin shimmered slightly like…

“A pearl,” Rose said, breath caught in her throat. Then she smiled again, the light of it reaching her black eyes. “My Pearl.” 

***

When I awoke, my body, for once, did not ache. I sat up in the first and only bed I had ever seen. Light streamed through a stained glass window depicting a lion with a mane of roses. I blinked at the warmth, at the beautiful pink light glimmering through that window. I watched the rays dance on my hand for a moment before pulling the plush blankets off of me. 

Beneath the covers, I was clothed in a simple, white nightgown--another first. I was used to being either clothed in rags or nude. Even such a simple slip of a things seemed grand to me. Gasping, I ran a hand over it, tears welling up in my eyes. Never had I ever been treated so wonderfully. 

My excitement and awe only grew when I noticed the smell of hot, sweet porridge. I followed the scent, opening the doors to the huge room I had found myself in. There was a long hallway, all marble, just outside of the door. Many other doors looked back at me, but I ignored them for now. My stomach was growling loudly. Provided I had only been out for one night, this would make the fourth day I was without food. I needed something--anything--and badly. Even the thought of tearing down one of the paintings on the wall and chewing on the canvas seemed like a better idea than starving. 

Eventually, however, and thankfully for the wall paintings, I found my way into a massive dining hall. There was a long table, but only one chair. Having been a slave for my entire life, I did not know that this was odd, but something felt off about it. Why have so much space devoted to only one chair? Ignoring the niggling feeling in the back of my head, I sat down. Just as I had smelled, there was a huge bowl of sweetened porridge, along with apples that should have been long out of season but looked fresh, toast with a pat of butter and a small container of honey. My mouth watered. 

I ate with care, savoring every last morsel until I felt like I was going to burst. Everything that passed through my lips tasted sweet. I groaned a little once I had finished; I had eaten too much on an empty stomach. Carefully, I pushed the china away from me and set my head on the oak table. Only then did I notice that it was engraved with some sort of scene. 

Interested, I stood up, looking at the mural carved into the wood. It depicted some sort of battle; there were many warriors fighting on the left side of the ‘battlefield.’ On the right was a handful of warriors, looking up at a giant woman in the sky. No. Not a giant woman. A goddess. I had heard of them before--people of power that lived in the skies. People worshipped them, loved them, and begged them to be gifted with things like long life and riches. 

“Poppycock,” I said to myself, turning away from the beautiful carvings. Never once had I been saved from a life of slavery by a god or goddess. My thoughts turned to Rose Quartz, and I paused. My hands gripped the side of the table behind me. I looked up, seeing a painting of the woman on the wall. She looked so serene, so perfect and beautiful. I had to advert my eyes. 

Where was she?

Now that I had breakfast in me (and now that it was weighing me down), I felt tired again. On my way to the great dining hall, I had made a mental map of the castle. At least, I assumed it was a castle. It could have been a house for all I knew, a mansion, a church. It could have been anything, and I would have believed it. Slowly, I returned to the room I had first emerged from, crawled back into the lush bed, and fell asleep. 

Hours passed. When I awoke again, it was nearly evening. I stretched, yawning. The beautiful light from the window had turned grey and purple; I watched it, yet again, play on the pale skin of my hand. 

Upon getting out of the bed, I saw that there was a huge wardrobe. Somehow, I had missed it before--either that, or it had simply winked itself into existence while I had been asleep. Either was possible, and I was too enchanted by my surroundings to think otherwise. Beside the wardrobe was a vanity, complete with mirror and softly cushioned stool. 

A mirror. 

I swallowed hard. I had never seen my reflection before. I approached the thing as though it would reach out and bite me. Slowly, slowly, ever so slowly, I sat on the stool, my eyes adverted from the polished glass. Then I looked at myself for the first time. 

Despite the bruising around my eye, despite the smaller bruises on my cheek and shoulder, I could see why the other slaves had thought me beautiful. I had eyes the color of the sky on a bright day--something I had seen for myself for the first time, with Amethyst (I started to weep at the thought of her, but pinched my cheeks to make myself stop). I sat, staring into them for a very long time before glancing at my nose. It was long and sharp, but in an elegant sort of way. I turned my head this way and that, looking at it. Then my thin lips, which looked like they were always in some sort of frown until I smiled. When I did smile, right there, into the mirror, I almost lost it again. My teeth were even and straight and perfect; a blush creeped across my face. 

Most startling, however, was my hair. Like all mining slaves, I was forced to keep it short so it would not get in the way in case of a collapsed tunnel. When I had first touched Amethyst’s long, pale hair, I had been envious of it. It was soft and gentle. Mine....I ran my fingers through it now, marveling at the color, at how well the short cut actually suited my face. It was an odd shade of pink--not the beautiful, true pink that Rose Quartz had, but some sort of pink-salmon color. I did not know a name for it. 

True enough, I was thin--perhaps too thin for safety--but that suited me as well. If I gained weight, with the way my bone structure was, I was sure I would look terrible. It was a bit of a shame--I rather liked the look of plump women. All of their lovely curves...but it was not meant for me.

I closed my eyes, then looked down at my hands anew. They were long, with thin, tapered fingers. How long had I looked at them without noticing the beauty in them? I shook my head. No. It had to do with the food, I was certain, or with the good sleep I had gotten. Something about this castle made me think I was lovely to look at. I sighed. In reality, I was probably just some gangly slave girl. Tears sprang to my eyes. 

Then there was a knock at the door. Startled, I quickly stood up, but only succeeded in knocking over a set of combs with pearl handles. I gasped, reaching for them. Somehow I managed to grab them before they hit the floor. “C-come in,” I said to the door, my voice uncertain as I tenderly placed the combs back where they belonged. 

“I see you’ve awoken. Good. Did you enjoy your food this morning?”

I turned to see Rose Quartz, her tall, curvaceous body taking up most of the door frame. I swallowed a little, nodding. “Yes, thank you, Master.” I bowed deeply to the woman, assuming I would be her personal slave from now on. 

Rose turned a delightful shade of pink, almost matching her hair. “Wh--what?” she gasped, laughing as though I had just told her the funniest joke in the world. “No, no no. I didn’t take you away from that life just to force you to serve me!” She held her middle, laughing still. Tears started to fall from her eyes. I could only stand and stare, unblinking. 

When I found my tongue, I asked, “Then, for what?”

Straightening, Rose smiled without showing her teeth. “To be my companion. To be my friend. Do you know how long it has been since I have had someone who is alive in these halls? I am so lonely. Sure, there are Ruby and Sapphire, but they are so far away now…” She rubbed at her eyes with a finger, face still amused. I did not question who Ruby and Sapphire were, but I did store their names for a later time. Stepping into the room, I felt warmth radiating off of her body, as though she were made of fire. Odd, since she had been so cold before. 

Finally, I asked, voice soft, “What are you?”

“Oh, me?” Rose asked, smiling now with all of her teeth. I spotted her fangs again--I had not dreamed them up, it seemed--and nearly fainted at the sight of them. “I am Rose Quartz, Duchess of the Vampire Court.” 

Instinctively, I stepped backward. With the vanity stool right behind me, I tripped. Faster than lightning, Rose moved, grabbing my wrist. She pulled me up before I could hit the floor. I gasped, trying to pull away. Surely she was going to drink my blood! Still, I found that part of me wanted that--to see what it felt like, having her lips against my skin, her teeth in my flesh, her tongue lapping up my blood....Would I taste good to her? ‘No,’ I thought. ‘She must have more refined taste, being a Duchess and all.’ 

“Shush, Pearl,” she said calmly, stroking the side of my face with her free hand. I felt power there; she could have crushed me if she so wished. “I am not here to harm you.” Once she had me back on my feet, she let go of me. There was some sadness in her black eyes. “If you wish to leave, you may. You are free now; you are no longer a slave.” 

I shook my head. “I will always be a slave.” I rolled up my sleeve, showing her my brand in case she had somehow missed it while I was nude in front of her before. It was a crudely shaped diamond, mark of the kingdom I had come from. 

With a smile, Rose tilted her head to the side. Large, plump, hot tears began to roll down her face. “Who was so cruel that they would mar someone as beautiful as you?” She used her fingers to gather up a few of the tears, then spread the warm wetness on my skin. I marveled as the diamond disappeared, my skin fusing together as though healing anew. The scar faded, leaving nothing behind. She carefully rolled my sleeve back down, patting the place my brand had once been. 

I shivered. 

“Come, spend the night with me,” Rose said gently. “If you wish. If you wish to leave…” There was a slight hitch in her voice, a terrible lonesomeness on her face. “If you do wish to leave, I will supply you with enough food and water to get you safely to the nearest town, and enough gold to make sure you live comfortably.” 

My mind was made up, however. I tenderly placed my hand on her arm, looking up into her dark eyes. “You have shown me the ultimate kindness. What kind of person would I be if I left you now?” I smiled. “Thank you, Mas--er...Rose Quartz.” 

“Just Rose is fine,” she said, the smile returning to her eyes. She stroked my hand, gently, then turned her attention to the wardrobe. “I believe you will find suitable clothing for you in there.” She looked back at me. “You are a little thinner than I thought you would be, but I believe we can have a tailor come to the castle to make something better for you.” 

“I have lived in rags my entire life,” I said. “I am grateful for anything you provide.” 

With that, she left me alone for a moment so I could get dressed. I rummaged through the clothing, finding everything from dresses and corsets to nightgowns to breeches and tunics. There were all different fashions of footwear as well--riding boots, high heels, flats...I was overwhelmed. 

After some time, I emerged from the room Rose had given to me--I realized that suddenly with a blush--in a pair of black slacks and a white, button up top. I had opted for a pair of light blue flats that matched my eyes. Rose looked at me, nodding in approval. She smiled, then threw something over my shoulders. It was a black, fur lined cloak. I looked at it, feeling the nice weight against my body. “What is this for?” I asked.

“I do not feel the cold,” Rose said softly. Everything about her was soft. I liked that. “I have been told that this castle gets awfully chilly. I would not want you to catch a cold.” There was a concerned look on her plump face. It was quickly replaced with a smile. “You must be hungry. Come. Let me find you something scrumptious to dine upon.” 

All things considered, I was still full from breakfast, but I followed her down into the dining room. I looked around. Now there were two chairs at the huge table, and already there was a steaming plate of steak, peas, and winter squash. My mouth watered. I looked at Rose for permission to eat. She only smiled at me, sitting across from me as I tucked in. 

Days passed. I soon found myself living by Rose’s sleep schedule--daytime was for slumber, while the night was ours. She taught me many things, and marveled at the fact that I could already read and write. Her library was opened to me, and I was allowed to pour over novels and history tomes. Weeks passed. Rose showed me the huge, grand pipe organ that her former Master (the woman who had transformed her into a vampire to begin with) had owned. My fingers itched to touch it, to play, to learn. I learned the full layout of the castle and the castle grounds; I visited the nearby village for supplies while Rose slumbered in her coffin. 

Months passed, and I realized I was falling in love again. Amethyst was still tucked away in my mind, in the very depths of my subconscious, but I had resigned myself to having lost her. Rose was there and real. Very, very real. 

One day, I awoke long before evening. It was rare that I did so, only on market days, but I had already done our business a week prior. Silently, I crept downstairs with the thought in my mind to watch Rose sleep. I had done so once before, only once, and it had been so magical to simply watch her. She did not need to breath and had no heartbeat; in sleep, she was completely still. 

I made my way to the basement of the castle where her crypt was. There was but one torch to provide me light. I took it from its sconce on the wall, half feeling my way down to Rose’s burial chamber. My feet touched the earth; there was dirt littered upon the floor. I looked at it for a moment, noting that, even in the darkness and dampness of the crypt, there was one wild rose bush flourishing. Impossible, but true. Something about Rose Quartz made everything grow. 

Finally, I reached her coffin. It was simple pine box--nothing fancy. Slowly, carefully, I pried the lid off. Rose lay inside, surrounded by feather pillows, her arms neatly folded over her chest. She looked every bit like an angel. 

I leaned in and kissed her plump lips. 

Rose did not stir. She continued to sleep until the sun was completely below the horizon. Only then did her black eyes open, glazed over and confused. “Pearl?” she asked, using the name she had given me (and I had gladly taken). 

Smiling down at her, I stroked a curl of her hair, moving it away from her face. “I’m sorry. I couldn’t help myself. I wanted to see you, and I could not sleep.” She reached up and grabbed my hand, holding it in her own larger one. 

“You make me feel so safe, Pearl. My Pearl.” Rose sighed a little, closing her eyes again. Slowly, she sat up and stretched. I heard a soft pop from her back as her spine aligned again. “What would you like to do tonight, my sweet?”

Before I could answer, there was a loud clanging sound from above. I blinked a few times, staring up at the ceiling as though it would provide me with the answers I needed. Then I looked to Rose, who looked startled. 

“Someone is here,” she whispered. With fear in her eyes--real fear--she turned to look to me. “Stay here, Pearl. I do not know who it might be. It might be someone from the Vampire Court.” With that, she quickly got out of her coffin and ascended the stairs. I was quick on her heels, despite her warnings against it. 

The clanging proved to be the sound of the door knocker. I stood back, watching as Rose threw open the doors. Just behind it, a dark skinned youth held another in her arms, fear written on her face. “Rose,” she croaked. “It’s Sapphire. She’s...she’s been attacked…” 

“Come in,” Rose said quickly, ushering the two inside. I stood aside, watching with wide eyes. So this was Ruby--the one conscious--and Sapphire. Rose had spoken of them a few times. They were witches that lived nearby as part of a coven, but had recently left to practice their magic elsewhere. It seemed that, now, they had returned, and had somehow managed to get into trouble. 

The four of us moved swiftly into the dining room. Rose cleared off the table of what should have been my evening meal--I was fine with it as the food clattered to the ground, the plates smashing into pieces. This witch was more important. Besides, the kitchens would magic up more food for me in the morning, if I so desired it. 

“What attacked her?” Rose asked feverishly. She helped Ruby place Sapphire on the table, checking her over for injuries. I could not see any, but Rose sucked in a harsh breath. “Her heart has stopped.”

There were tears in Ruby’s dark eyes. “We were on our way back to the coven. Something flipped our carriage--it was too dark to see. Sapphire attempted to cast a light spell, but it backfired and...it hit her. Something anti-magical was there. That’s what attacked us.” With the tears still running down her face, her lips arched down into a scowl. “When I find what did this to her, I’m gonna kill it! I’m gonna tear it apart piece by piece and use it in a stew!” 

Swallowing, Rose shook her head. “I am going to attempt to heal her.” With that, big, wet tears began to roll down her face. I watched, as amazed as ever, as the tears fell onto Sapphire’s chest. There was a hole in her clothing, just where her heart should be, and the skin beneath was raw. The tears splashed onto the broken skin, and almost instantly, began to heal it. The woman named Sapphire groaned a little. Her chest began to rise and fall with every breath she took. “Th...there.” 

Ruby gasped, jumping up onto the table to hug her companion. No--there was more to it than that. They were in love. I could tell from the way Ruby held Sapphire. A smile crept onto my face and tears to my eyes. I quickly wiped them away. 

Then, as though noticing me for the first time, Ruby glared at me. “Who is that?” 

Startled, Rose looked over her shoulder at me. “Oh!” she said happily. “This is Pearl. My new companion.” 

Ruby sniffed the air as though smelling me. She frowned deeply, then looked away. “Hello,” she snapped angrily. 

“Uh...Hello.” 

Sapphire moaned again, clutching at her chest. Ruby looked down at her, then kissed her lightly on the cheek. “It’s okay now. Rose saved you,” she said with a half-smile. “I got you here in time, Sapphire.” 

“R-Ruby?” 

“It’s okay, hush.”

Rose nodded a little. “The two of you are more than welcome to stay here for the time being,” she said softly. “Until we figure out what attacked you, it is not safe for you to be on the road. No matter how closely you live.” She smiled. While I was watching her, two more chairs appeared at the table. She gently helped Sapphire and Ruby off of it, then turned to me. “Please, Pearl. Would you mind showing them to the guest room?” 

I nodded a little. “Of course.” The guest room was near my own bedroom, just across the hallway. I looked down at Ruby, who was still supporting a very tired looking Sapphire. “This way.” I lead them upstairs, walking slowly so Sapphire did not have to exert herself. I had so many questions for them, however, that my brain was abuzz. I had never met a witch before, let alone two. How powerful were they? How had they come to know Rose? What had attacked them? I wisely kept my mouth shut, however, until we reached the room they were to share. I opened the door for them. “Here we are.” I offered them both a smile, and received one back from Sapphire. Ruby, on the other hand...she simply glared at me. 

Once they were inside, the door slammed shut of its own accord--or perhaps by magic. I sighed a little. The cloak I almost always wore felt heavier than usual. I took it off, going into my own bedroom to place it carefully on my oversized bed. I lingered there for a moment, breathing through my nose and simply smelling everything around me. Then I sniffed at my arm. Ruby had been sniffing me. So what did I smell like? I could only smell the sweet soap I used when I bathed, and a hint of Rose’s scent. 

Finally, I decided to ignore the other woman. She had been a little rude, even if I was a stranger to her.


	3. To Learn the Way of the Sword and of the Heart

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pearl and Rose Quartz train in the darkness of night, and Pearl learns to listen to her heart more.

I was not allowed to leave the castle grounds. 

It was a sudden order from Rose Quartz, a surprise for me since I had been told I was a free agent. I could understand her concern, however; whatever had attacked Ruby and Sapphire had been anti-magical. No one knew what it would or could do to a human such as myself, but the very thought of it near me made my entire body shiver. 

“You need to learn to defend yourself,” Rose said, though not unkindly. Three nights had passed since Sapphire had been healed. Three nights of being too afraid to even walk in the gardens. I shivered every time I passed a window or an open door; I soon lost interest in eating, even though I now had guests that dined with me. 

As it turned out, witches needed to eat just as much as humans did. Ruby and Sapphire joined me at meal times, though both were poor at holding conversation. Sapphire was a mystic--she knew everything before it was said, before I could even think it. She was constantly answering questions I had yet to ask, or speaking at the oddest times when I had no thought in my head. Ruby, on the other hand, simply seemed upset all of the time. I soon came to realize that it was not me that she was upset with, but herself for allowing her love to be injured in such a way. 

Ruby looked up at Rose Quartz, a frown on her face as per usual. “A human defending herself against that kind of monster? A corrupt? No way. She’ll be dead in an instant.” 

“I see many visions of her death,” Sapphire agreed. She looked through her bangs at Rose Quartz. “However, I do see many paths where she lives to tell the tale of dispatching whatever attacked us. If only I could see what sort of creature it is...But ah. It has some sort of barrier around it. I can only tell that it is fully corrupt.” 

Feeling stupid, I spoke up. “What is a corrupt?” I asked, pushing some potato around my plate. Suddenly I was not very hungry. I waited for the answer. 

Rose turned to face me, gently lifting my head up with two of her fingers. I looked at her, and she dropped her hand. “A corrupt is a monster that has no soul. You know that all monsters and magic users have some sort of gem embedded into their skin?” She pointed to the quartz in her stomach, and Ruby and Sapphire offered up their hands, which had gems inlaid in the left and right palm, respectively. “These gems are specially harvested from the Earth were magical deposits lie dormant. It is the gems that allow us to use magic, that keep us alive. Sometimes, however, if there is a flaw in the gem, or if the gem becomes cracked, the monster attached to it becomes corrupt. Their soul flees the body, leaving behind nothing more than a husk.” 

Fear must have shone in my eyes. Rose laughed a little, hugging my shoulders against her warm chest. I must admit, I cuddled down into her breasts, sighing and smelling her. She smelled of safety, of roses and earth and everything I had come to love. “I promise, that will never happen to me,” she said, soothing my worry. 

Then she released me. I looked up at her still, waiting. She smiled down at me. “Have you ever handled a sword before?”

“No,” I said, a slight frown on my face. “I’ve never handled anything more dangerous than a hammer and chisel.” I clicked my tongue. “Or a pick axe, but that was only once.” 

Smiling again, Rose laughed. She took my pale hand in her own. She lead me away from the dining hall and down, down into the basement, further than I had been before. We moved together, silent, until Rose had to bend to open a trapdoor in the area just beyond her coffin. I gasped--instantly I could smell gunpowder and steel. 

I stepped back, fearful. It smelled of something I did not understand--something raw and angry. Rose tugged me forward. Trusting in her, I swallowed, and followed her down the stairs into an armory. 

The room I found myself in was dusty and old; obviously, it had not been used in decades. Longer than I had been alive, it lay dormant. Now it seemed to spring to life. Torches in their sconces sprang into flames, illuminating swords, spears, shields, armor and all other sorts of things I could not name. On the walls was a huge mural, similar to the one on the dining room table, though this was a little different. 

The goddess the people were praying to was Rose Quartz. 

Gasping, I stared at her image on the wall. I leaned in, breathing on it. Dust flew up my nose and I sneezed. 

Rose smiled. “I used to have servants,” she said softly. “And friends. When I was young...I was a little full of myself.” She raised a hand to the mural, looking at herself with a sigh. “People flocked to me during the times of war. They begged me to make them vampires, to make them immortal so that they may fight forever. I...I was foolish. It is a long story, and not pressing at the moment, my dear Pearl. Come. Allow me to find a suitable weapon for you.” 

Still, my eyes lingered on the image until she pulled me away. I looked instead at a barrel of gunpowder. I recognized the smell only because it had been used as an explosive in the mines I had once slaved away in. It was dangerous stuff; it caused more cave ins than not. Many of my fellow slaves had been killed thanks to it. Carefully, I moved away from the barrel but only managed to run into a suit of armor that was far too large to belong to anyone other than Rose Quartz. 

I turned to straighten the armor, noting the rose and lion insignias on the breastplate and shoulders. “Did you...fight in the wars?” I asked cautiously. It was dangerous territory. Rose did not like to speak of her past. Of that, I was certain. She granted me snippets into her life, as she had with the mural, but a full on conversation...Usually, her face darkened and she excused herself. 

Now, however, she straightened a little, her shoulders back and her hair tossed to the side. “When I was human,” she said simply. “I have...fought in many wars. Many I am still fighting.” Then she turned to face me, her black eyes swallowed up by the torchlight. There was no smile gracing her plump face. No hint of joy. I feared I had upset her. She glided forward on silent feet and pushed me against the wall. I gasped, afraid that she was going to hit me, to bite me, for asking such a rude question. Instead, she pressed the pommel of a sword into my hand. “Here.” 

Then she was gone, leaving me alone in the armory, clutching a sword. 

***

“Wouldn’t it be easier to just, y’know...change her?” Ruby asked, voice softer than it had been in days. She sat at the dining room table, facing Rose as the larger woman paced back and forth in front of her. Sapphire sat at her side, drinking deeply from a gold goblet of wine. Groaning, the youth pushed her chair back and put her feet up on the table. Sapphire slapped her a little, looking at her as though reminding her that they were not at home. Ruby’s feet remained where they were. 

Rose sighed deeply. She looked out of the nearby window. It was nearly dawn. She did not have much time left in the night. “I frightened her tonight,” she whispered. “I was so close...so close to losing myself. Her scent is driving me crazy.” 

“When was the last time you fed?” Ruby asked, point blank. It made Rose cringe. That was enough of an answer for the hot-headed youth. “You’ve gotta be joking with me! Rose, you’ll go corrupt at this rate! Your gem can only provide so much for you. You need blood!” 

Sapphire spoke. “I see a future in which you attack Pearl.” Her voice was solemn. “You drain her dry, and she dies before you can perform the ritual.” 

Rose squeezed her eyes shut and slammed her fist against the table. The entire thing shook, jarring Ruby’s feet off of the wooden structure. She jumped up, grabbing her untouched goblet of wine, and sighed. Rose jerked back. “I...I’m sorry. I did not mean to…”

“It’s okay. Hey, hey. It’s okay,” Ruby said softly. She looked to Sapphire for a moment, who nodded at her unasked question, and then offered Rose her wrist. “If you need to drink, you need to drink.” 

Eyes widening, Rose pushed Ruby’s arm away. “No. I took a vow that I would not harm any human ever again!” She ran a hand through her curls, then squeezed her eyes shut. “Please, do not tempt me, Ruby.” 

“I ain’t exactly human anymore, now am I?” Ruby said, offering her bejeweled hand this time. “I’ve got magic in me. That makes me not-human, right? So you won’t be breaking your oath. You just need a little sip or somethin’.” 

Slowly, slowly, Rose sank down to her knees. Her dress billowed out around her, making her look like a fallen angel. With all of the care in the world, she took Ruby’s wrist. Pressing her mouth against it, her fangs broke the skin, and she drank. 

***

I was sweating like a pig. Air was hard to come by. It was so hot and humid that I could barely move. I forced myself forward. Parry. Parry. Thrust! My sword hand moved as though on its own, my ears ringing with the sound of metal hitting metal. Rose was on the receiving end of my blows, shouting encouragements to me through my exhaustion. I exhaled, and fell to my knees. Almost instantly, Ruby was at my side, pushing water into my mouth. I drank it down greedily, my body shaking from all of the exertion. 

A blister on my hand popped, oozing fluid down my wrist. I cringed, shivering. “I’m not built for fighting,” I breathed, harder than I realized. I felt dizzy. I felt weak. I felt useless. 

Rose smiled down at me. “But you’re prepared to try,” she said happily. Despite my state, she picked me up and twirled me around. “Oh, Pearl, my Pearl, I am so proud of you!” When she released me, she looked at my hand. Tears came to her eyes--I had realized about two days prior that she could summon them up willingly--and she wept into my palm until all of my blisters were healed. 

Nearly a week had passed since Rose had started to teach me how to sword fight. Ruby and Sapphire remained with us, unsure if it was safe to travel. I felt it was my duty to learn the ways of the sword; to protect Rose and my new friends. And friends they had become! Though Ruby was still hot headed and short with me, she had opened up a little bit. Beneath her tough exterior, she was a very pleasant person, and loved Sapphire more than anything else in the world. Sapphire, similarly, loved Ruby and her spontaneous nature, which was one of the few things she could not track with her future-vision. 

After Ruby had learned that I was once a slave, she had opened up about her own past. Before running away with Sapphire--who was a princess, of all things--she had been a palace guard, forced into the army by her father. Only by chance had she been assigned to Sapphire. Only by chance had they fallen in love. 

As to how they became witches...I had no idea. Neither would disclose that part of their past with me. I was fine with not knowing. What mattered was that I keep Rose Quartz safe. I focused on the present, feeling her hands leave my own once they had healed. 

“I think that is enough for the night,” Rose said. She released her own sword, letting it drop to the ground. I looked at it. It was just a regular sword; not the one that was stored with her armor. The one still in the armory was decorative and beautiful, and it had a matching shield to go with it. This one, however, was similar to the one I wielded. Light but sturdy. It was a practice sword, and nothing more. I grit my teeth. 

“We still have hours before dawn,” I said, pleading with her. “Come back, Rose, please!” Stretching out my arm, I grabbed for her, catching the hem of her dress. She looked back at me with sorrow in her eyes. “Please. I have to learn to protect you!” 

Rose gasped, staring at me. I could feel the heat rise up in my face. I had not meant to say that. Well, truth be told, I had meant to say it, but I did not mean to sound so desperate. I dropped the hem of her dress, wrapping my arms around myself. I could feel my heartbeat. I looked away. “I...I don’t want anything to happen to you.” 

Then she burst out laughing. “What could possibly happen to me?” she snorted, though not unkindly. “Pearl, I am the Duchess of the Vampire Court. I am just about as powerful as they come! This isn’t about protecting me, it’s about protecting you!” 

A mix of emotions rushed through me. First, I felt upset with myself. Then, with Rose. She was laughing at me, mocking me! I was steaming. Then I felt sorrow. I was so below her, so weak… “I just...want to be useful.” 

As though realizing she had hurt my feelings, Rose hugged me tightly to her massive chest. “Hush,” she said softly. “Hush, my Pearl. You are useful. You are my friend! My companion.” She looked down at me, kissing my hair. “And I love you for that. Very much.” 

I licked my lips. “I love you, Rose.” 

“I know,” she whispered back, but not with the emotion I craved. She loved me platonically. Not as a romantic partner. No part of her wanted to be with me. No part of her yearned for me or made her scream into her pillow in the early morning hours. Still, it was enough to know that she cared for me, at least on some level. 

Finally, she released me. She carefully picked her practice sword back up, testing its weight in her hands. “One more hour,” she said, and smiled. I nodded, and we began to train again. 

***

We heard of more attacks from couriers who came from the coven Ruby and Sapphire belonged to. They were humans, and they told us that many of their brethren had been killed attempting to get messages to Rose’s castle. Witches who traveled outside of the coven’s lands were killed nearly instantly, their gems never to be seen again. 

“It sounds like a harvester,” Sapphire said one evening at what had become our breakfast meal. I pushed a forkful of eggs around my plate, listening to her. “They have protective wards that would make it impossible for me to see them in any future.” That last bit was more for my information than for anyone else’s in the room. “It would certainly explain a few things.” 

Ruby punched her fist into her other palm. “Well, if we know what it is, we can take it out!” she chirped, happy to have something to fight. 

“Are you leaving, then?” I asked worriedly. 

Sapphire frowned a little. “I...I cannot see the future outcome of us leaving. It would be safer to remain here, but...our coven needs us. If this is truly a harvester, it will not stop until it is destroyed.” She sipped at her goblet. “It will destroy every last witch it can get its hands on.” 

“So we take it out!” Ruby said, small flames flickering from her fingers. She grinned. “Easy peasy. Fire spells work best on it! And fire is my middle name!” 

Sighing, Sapphire shook her head. “We will tell Rose, once she joins us.” 

“Where is she, anyway?” I asked, frowning. It was not like Rose to be late to one of our meals, even if she did not eat anything herself. 

Ruby and Sapphire looked at each other, and then away. I frowned at them until Ruby threw her hands into the air and sighed. “She told us not to tell you--”

“Ruby!” 

“--but she went into town herself. To buy something for you.” 

I nearly spat out the drink I had started to take. “For...for me?” I was astounded. What could be in town that Rose would risk her life to obtain? Furthermore, what could be so important that she would do it for me? I stood up, fetching my cloak from the back of my chair. “I need to find her. What if she has been attacked?” 

“Sit down,” Sapphire said carefully. “You have only had a month’s worth of sword training. Though you are progressing in leaps and bounds, if a harvester finds you...your blood will spill.” 

Ignoring her, I marched to my room, gathered my sword, and took off into the night. I had studied a map a few weeks ago, aided by Sapphire, and knew my way around the woods surrounding the castle. The nearest town was about three hours by foot. I took the most worn path I could find. Thankfully, it had rained earlier in the day, and Rose’s bare feet left light footprints I could follow. 

It was dark. I felt foolish the further I walked from the castle; I should have brought a torch. There was a bright light at my hip suddenly; I gasped, looking into the pocket of my cloak. Inside, nestled amongst the fur (which I had determined to have once belonged to a bear) was a glowing pearl. I blinked stupidly at it for a moment before using it to light my way. It was very warm in my hand, almost hot. Surprisingly, however, the heat felt good. It felt very good. For a moment, just a moment, I felt the magic running through me from it. 

I looked down at my free hand. The veins beneath my skin shone like fire. Shivering, I pressed forward in the darkness, a beacon of light in the depths of the forest. Why had the pearl been in my cloak? Who had put it there? Perhaps Rose...I shook the thought from my head. She would have never placed such a powerful thing in my belongings. As far as I knew, she wanted to keep me human forever. 

So then--

I could not finish my thought. I heard something cry out ahead of me. Startled, I slipped in the mud, nearly dropping the pearl. Quickly, I gathered myself, and rushed toward the sound. Whatever it was was now shrieking. I saw another light, this one pink and pure and beautiful. Rose Quartz! Just as she thrust her sword into a shadowy creature, I burst through the trees, my sword in hand and the pearl in the other. So startled was the creature that it had no time to defend against my attack. I cleaved its head from its shoulders. Black goop sprayed me in the face, but I did not care. The power of the gem in my hand spurred me onward. Everything was happening so slowly, yet I was moving so quickly!

There were three other creatures surrounding Rose. Using the first as a platform, I jumped off of it and thrust my sword deep into the second creature’s abdomen. It fell, spraying more of the black ooze into the air. I tasted it on my tongue; it tasted like ash and dirt. I spat it out quickly, then turned on the other creatures. Two left. The one I had springboarded off of, and the other, which had started to run away. Rose turned, stabbing it in the back. The thing shrieked, falling into nothingness. 

Together, as one, Rose and I charged the remaining creature. My sword sliced through its stomach, my body arching low, while she moved high, cutting cleanly through the thing’s head. We were both soon covered in that foul tasting goo. I shivered, and the pearl in my hand stopped glowing. 

Instantly, I was ill. Heaving, I dropped to the ground. Every inch of me ached as though I had been smashed with a hammer. A very large, spiked hammer. I vomited once, twice, three times before I was reduced to dry heaving. 

I was aware of Rose above me, watching. She suddenly grabbed me by the shoulder. Yanking me to my feet, I looked into her eyes. They were black, as usual; however, all merriment and shimmering life was gone from them. There was only a void. A very hungry void. “What do you think you you are doing?” she hissed. It would have been better if she had yelled at me; at least then, I could have yelled back. “Do you know what that is?” Motioning to the pearl still clutched in my hand, she finally released me. 

“It’s...It’s a pearl,” I gasped out. I still felt woozy from the power rush. I wanted to laugh, to cry, to sing. My body was still pulsing with the energy, but at the same time, it was spent. I had never felt so weak. “A gem.” 

“Yes! Full of dangerous magic! Where did you get it?!” She made a grab for it; I quickly pulled back. The thought of being without it hurt me suddenly. 

“It was in my cloak.” 

At this, Rose’s face turned sour. “In...in your cloak?” She looked at me with fresh eyes, all of the hunger and anger fading away. “That is impossible. I never put one there.” Her eyes took me in, watching me and looking for anything--something--for what? “Unless…” 

Carefully, she knelt down beside me. “Pearl. My Pearl.” 

“Yes?”

“When you held it, how did you feel?” There was worry on her face now. Gently, she touched the side of my head, then leaned in to kiss my hair. “Tell me, Pearl.” 

I closed my eyes. “I felt powerful,” I whispered. “I felt like I could take on the world.” 

When I looked up at her, there was such sadness in her eyes that I felt like I would cry. I breathed her name, and she held me tightly to her chest. When the tears did come, they came from both of us, melding together, and dropped to the forest floor like rain. 

***

Ruby and Sapphire were gone when we returned. The sun was just about to rise. I was so bone tired that I had forgotten to ask Rose what those creatures that we had fought were, but I assumed they had been corrupt monsters. Perhaps they were the harvesters Sapphire could not see. If that was the case, then she and Ruby were safe. 

Where the pearl had come from remained a mystery. I had a feeling that Ruby had slipped it into my cloak. Not to cause trouble, mind; rather, to protect me should I need it. Whatever the case, I was thankful to have it with me. Rose allowed me to keep it, but warned me that it was dangerous. I could understand; I had once mined gems that contained power like this. Never once, however, had I grown so attached to one. It was odd, I realized, that it was a pearl that I was so enamored with. Pearl. My name.

I closed my eyes one morning, sighing a little into my pillow. It was time for sleep, yet slumber did not find me as easily as it normally did. Eventually, I got out of bed and walked the halls of the castle, my cloak around my shoulders for warmth. Even though it was summer outside, in the corridors of the castle, it was eternally early spring, and cold. 

At first, I thought of going into the basement to watch Rose sleep. I had done it before; it soothed me. There was a loud knock on the door, however, which jarred any thought of peace ouf of my head. Who would be calling for Rose at such an hour?

With caution, I went to the door. I cursed not having my sword--I had left it in my bedroom. The pearl was in the pocket of my cloak. I would have to trust in the power within it to keep me safe, should there be danger beyond the door. I opened it, swallowing a little bit, and found a very battered Ruby standing outside. Gasping, I tried to usher her in, but she shook her head. Droplets of blood flew in every direction. 

“What happened?” I asked, voice hushed.

Ruby looked up at me with pain and tears in her eyes. “That thing attacked the coven again. It wasn’t a harvester. It was...something else. Something I’ve never seen before! Sapphire...oh my stars, Sapphire…” She sank down to her knees and wept. 

Pain hit me, straight in my chest. I knelt down beside my friend, putting my hand on her bloody shoulder. “You’re injured.” 

“I don’t care about me!” she snapped, throwing my hand off of her. “Sapphire is dead! I couldn’t...I couldn’t save her.” She pressed the palms of her hands into her eyes, trying to hold back more tears before they could fall. I watched her, unable to help. “I was hoping Rose knew what to do.” 

I bit my lip. “Rose is asleep--”

“I know!” Ruby snarled. She glared up at me. “That pearl. Do you have it?” 

“Y-yes. Were you the one that slipped it into my cloak?” 

Ruby nodded, anger on her face. “It is very powerful. Very powerful. Even though it’s only a pearl...There might be enough energy, enough magic, to help us. To help Sapphire. Get out here! Her body is in the carriage.” She grabbed my hand, pulling me out into the sunlight. I blinked stupidly, my eyes slowly adjusting to the brightness. Only then did I see the black, horse drawn carriage. Ruby dragged me to it. 

The inside was coated in blood. I gagged a little, pulling back to gather my thoughts and to suck fresh air into my lungs. Slowly, slowly, I put my sleeve up to my mouth and nose to block out the stench of decomposition. I leaned forward once more to peer inside. 

Sapphire’s body sat, one hand folded in her lap. The other arm was completely missing, torn off at the shoulder. Her hair was ripped from her scalp, and pieces of her were simply...gone. I swallowed down bile, turning away once more. “I don’t think even Rose could help,” I whispered. 

Carefully, I took the pearl from my pocket. It was not glowing. It was not doing anything. It just sat there, in the palm of my hand, looking beautiful and simple. I willed it to do something, but it simply lay there. 

There was so much hope in Ruby’s eyes when I turned to look at her. “I...I’m sorry,” I breathed softly. “It isn’t working. I don’t know how to make it work!” 

Ruby grabbed either side of her head and screamed, pulling at her hair. “No! No no no no no!” She threw open the carriage door. Grabbing up Sapphire’s corpse, she made her way into the castle, shouting for Rose. I followed after, unsure as to what I could do to help. I felt useless. We made our way down to Rose’s crypt. 

Grunting, Ruby kicked at the coffin in the center of the room. “Wake up!” she shrieked. “Wake up, Rose! We need you! Now!” 

There was a mumble from within the coffin. Slowly, the lid rose up, and Rose herself sat up. She blinked and yawned a few times before licking her lips. “What…” she started, but then smelled blood. Her eyes turned dangerous. Animalistic. “What is the meaning of this?” 

I wrung my hands togethers, standing at the foot of the stairs leading back up. Ruby lay Sapphire at the side of the coffin, tears running down her face. She explained to Rose what had happened--the coven had been attacked by large, white creatures covered in all sorts of gems. Golems. Something or someone was controlling them. Sapphire had urged Ruby to run. There was so much panic, so much chaos...They were separated. When Ruby found Sapphire again, she had been torn apart and was barely breathing. It was only on the fast and furious carriage ride to the castle that she had died in Ruby’s arms. 

Rose swallowed. She looked down at the body of her friend, and squeezed her eyes shut. “There is one thing we can try,” she whispered. “But it will require you to make the ultimate sacrifice. Are you prepared for that, Ruby?”

“Anything,” the other woman responded, her face set in determination. 

Rose looked at me for a moment. She was so tired--I could tell by the bags under her lovely, dark eyes. “Pearl,” she said, voice as soft as silk. “You should be in bed.” With those words, I felt more tired than I ever had before. I blinked, and when my eyes opened again, I was in my bed. I blinked again, and it was night time. 

Vampire magic. 

With a groggy head, I flipped back the covers until I could feel the crisp night air on my skin. I got out of bed, stumbling to the wardrobe to find something suitable for the night. Whatever Rose had done to me left me feeling drained, so it took roughly twice the amount of time to dress as it normally did. Eventually, I left my room wearing a pair of black slacks, a blue button up shirt with a high collar, and the same blue flats I had been wearing for most of my stay in the castle. My cloak remained in the wardrobe; I wanted the chill of the castle to wake me up. 

The image of a tattered Sapphire rushed through my head. I shivered, stopped at a corner in the corridor. I braced myself against the wall. Through sheer will alone, I managed not to vomit. I had to check on them--to see if Rose had been successful in bringing Sapphire back to life. 

I started for the stairs that lead to Rose’s crypt. There was someone standing in the middle of the hall, however, studying one of the paintings. She was tall--taller than me, but shorter than Rose Quartz. Her skin was dark with a hint of red to it. I blinked a few times. Something about her seemed familiar, but I could not put my finger on it. Then she turned to me, and I gasped. 

The woman was stitched together. Her plump lips parted as though she was going to speak to me, but could not find the words. One eye was a red color, like Ruby’s; the other was a beautiful blue I had never seen. In the center of her forehead was a third eye, purple in color, but it was odd. It looked as though it had been mashed together, somehow, to make the perfect hue between the other eyes. I stared in wonder at this woman, this monster.

“Pearl?” she finally asked. I nearly jumped out of my skin. 

“Who are you?” I asked. I, once again, had left my sword in my bedroom. Cursing myself, I felt for the pearl--but that, too, had been left in my chambers, along with my cloak. I was defenseless. Realizing this, I took a few steps back, away from the strange, stitched together woman. 

The woman frowned. There was such a look of sadness in her eyes that I immediately felt terrible. “It...it’s us. Me. I don’t know how to say it. I don’t know how to feel it. Rose did this...to us. To save Sapphire, Ruby gave up her life and they created...me.” She showed me her hands, palms up. Twin garnets glimmered in the center of her palms, but the cut of the gems looked similar to the different cuts of the gems that had once been embedded into Ruby and Sapphire’s hands, respectively. I gasped a little. “I am Garnet now.” 

Shaking, I shook my head. It was impossible. Rose had stitched them together? She had created this woman from the pieces of our friends. I felt ill again. My hand went to my mouth, covering it, as tears began to spill from my eyes. Yet, deep down, I saw this creature as being the epitome of love. Two beings joined together, forever, in one body. How pure. How beautiful. I wept harder, overjoyed and sad at once. Garnet simply watched me, her eyes moving to follow my tears as they fell from my eyes. 

“Pearl,” she said, speaking again. “Do not cry. Please.”

 

“I am...so happy for you,” I breathed. “Welcome to the world, Garnet.” I smiled up at her, brushing the tears from my eyes. “How did Rose do it?” 

Garnet shook her head, putting her sewn-together hand on my shoulder. “Not today. Maybe sometime soon, I will tell you.” She smiled a little, then went back to looking at the painting behind her. “Rose is very tired,” she said as I started toward the staircase. “Doing this...drained her magical abilities.” 

I nodded a little. “Thank you for the warning,” I said, half jokingly. Rose could never be grumpy--not really. Garnet only watched me with those three eyes, sighing a little as she turned, again, to the painting. 

Slowly, I made my way down the stairs. If Rose was possible of creating life out of death, what else could she do? Ruby and Sapphire might have been gone, but in their place was something beautiful and new. Garnet. I hummed to myself as I followed the staircase down, down, down into the crypt. I felt light. Happy. 

When I came to Rose’s coffin, I gently lifted the lid. She was inside still, slumbering peacefully, though there was a terrible look on her face. Her brow was furrowed, lips drawn into a frown. Her skin looked paler than normal, sickly. I looked down at her gem. Gasping, I nearly fell back onto my bottom. It was pale, like her skin, and dull. 

“Rose,” I whispered. My happiness for Garnet fled. Now worry filled my being. Rose looked ill. I needed to do something! I was not sure what, but I had to help her somehow. I knelt beside the coffin, looking over the woman I loved. Suddenly, her eyes snapped open. I gasped again. “Rose!” 

She turned her eyes to me. Inky blackness swallowed me up, drank me down. There was no light in her eyes. They looked so dark, so inhuman. Filled with hunger, with hate, with nightmares. I screamed, pulling back, but her arm flew out of the coffin to grab me. She pulled me forward, moving upward at the same moment until she had me cradled in her lap. Her grip on me was firm. Tight. I was being crushed against her body. 

Rose opened her mouth, her face buried in my neck before I realized what was truly happening. I screamed again, hoping that Garnet could hear me, that she would come, that she would save me somehow...Rose’s tongue licked at my skin. I shivered, and stopped screaming. It was as though my entire body had gone numb. I could feel her small, delicate fangs prick my throat. Then they went deeper. Deeper. Deeper. Shaking, I tried to push her away, but it was a fruitless effort. 

I felt hot tears fall from my eyes as she began to drink. Deeply. My vision swam before my eyes. I shivered, I shook. I whimpered and pleaded, but the sounds coming from my mouth sounded like a sheep going to the slaughter. “Rose,” I breathed. “Please…” 

Suddenly, I found myself on the floor. I put my hand to my neck, feeling the blood drip from between my fingers. Heaving, I looked at Rose, but I was seeing double. Faintly, I could hear her call my name. She was crying--pure, true tears that fell onto my neck. “My Pearl,” she breathed, holding me. I shrieked at her touch, however, the fear of her--of what she was--so deep inside of me that I could not think straight. I shook all over. Finding what little strength I had left in my body, I pushed her away. 

I scrambled to my feet, gasping for air. I was no longer bleeding, thank the stars, because of Rose’s tears. Still dizzy, still half blind from the loss of blood, I ran into a nearby wall headfirst. 

When I awoke, I was in my bed again. I felt cold, even with all of the blankets covering me. Cold and hungry, with a terrible headache. Groaning, I sat up, and instantly regretted it. Someone touched my shoulder; I instantly flinched away. 

Rose Quartz sat beside me, tears in her eyes. “Pearl,” she said, softly. She bowed her head. “I am so sorry. I never meant to harm you. I--” 

I clutched the covers in my hands. I tried to gather myself. “Garnet warned me,” I finally croaked out. “I should have listened to her. I should have realized what she had meant. You used so much energy bringing her into existence, in saving what was left of Sapphire and...and fusing her with Ruby...I should have known.” 

“You’ve never seen me like that,” Rose protested. “You couldn’t have known how much of a toll it would take on me.” She put her hand on her chest, more tears falling from her eyes. “Pearl...I can never take back what I did. I can only hope you forgive me...Somehow.” 

It was too much for me to handle. “Please don’t cry, Rose,” I begged. Gently, I put my slender hand on her shoulder. “Please.” She looked at me, hundreds of tears still unwept in her eyes. It hurt my heart to see her in so much agony. Gently, I leaned forward and kissed her lips. They were soft and plump; so beautiful. She tasted like the richest, sweetest wine in the world. 

She kissed me back. 

***

With the threat of the golem that had attacked the coven still looming over us, I doubled my efforts in sword fighting. Often, I had my pearl with me to spur me on. It filled me with power, and it allowed me to act more quickly than I would normally. Rose allowed it, though she was still worried about what it might do to me in the long run. 

I, personally, did not care. As long as I was able to protect Rose, that was all that mattered. 

It was a dark night. Darker than usual, for the moon was new and missing from the sky. All of the stars were blotted out by clouds; there was a storm moving in. Rose and I were training, as usual, using her gardens as a battle ground. Garnet sat on a stone pillar, watching us from afar. 

I had grown stronger. I could feel the lithe muscles beneath my skin flex as I moved. Rose said I moved gracefully, like a dancer. Honestly, I was simply moving in the way that felt natural. Fluid. The sword and I were one, moving across the ground to strike like a viper. We had moved on from practice swords to true sabers, varying day to day in type. I wanted to master them all. 

Rose halted our practice for a moment. My hands no longer blistered, but she liked to check them over every so often. Gently, she kissed my fingers. It had been nearly a week since she had attacked me out of hunger. Ever since then, she was careful with me to a fault. I sighed a little, letting her trace my palm with her lips. 

“What were you going into town for, that day?” I asked. 

She looked at me, a frown on her face. “I never did receive it, did I?” She knelt beside me, dropping her sword and pulling me into a hug. “I wanted to get something special for you, my Pearl. Something that no one else has ever given you.” 

“What?” I pushed. 

“Your own weapon. Not a sword; I think you would work a spear wonderfully.” 

I blinked a few times. “I have never--” 

Rose smiled. “You will.” She stood up, gently letting me go. “Those things that attacked us in the forest were corrupt monsters. Boogies. They are what nightmares are made of.” That was all that she said. Eventually, she picked up her sword again, but only to study it. I watched her, taking her in. She was so beautiful…

Suddenly, I fell into a fit of laughter. Everything seemed so perfect, so right. I simply could not hold in my joy any longer. I had to let it out or I would simply burst! Rose must have sensed my happiness; she turned to look at me with a wide grin. 

There, in the darkness of night, we danced together, swords forgotten.


	4. The Diamond Court

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A short chapter in which Pearl learns a few things, and an enemy is defeated.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Sorry that this chapter is so short! I've been very busy and haven't had the time to write as much as I would like to. Hopefully I can get the next few chapters up over the weekend. 
> 
> Thank you to everyone who has left a comment or given me kudos! I am so excited to write something that you all enjoy. :)

I began my night with taking a long, much needed, bath. It felt good to slip my body into the heated water; I even added rose petals to sweeten the smell of the liquid. My muscles began to relax, one by one, and eventually, I fell asleep. When I awoke, the water was still blissfully hot, and someone had joined me. 

Rose Quartz smiled at me from the other end of the massive bathtub. I seemed to take up almost no space at all, while she filled up the rest of the space pleasantly. I smiled at her, then yawned. After training so much with the sword, I was beat, to say the least. Rose laughed at me, but not unkindly; rather, she leaned in and pressed her body against mine. We kissed. 

“Garnet has left,” she said when we pulled away from each other. “To fight the golem. I do not know if she will be successful.” 

A pang of worry rose up in my head, giving me the slightest of headaches. I sighed, leaning back in the bathtub until the water covered everything but my nose. I could feel Rose’s dark eyes on my pale skin. Slowly, I emerged from the water. I found that I could feel the very ends of my hair brushing my shoulders. I looked at a strand of it for a moment and sighed. I had changed since coming to Rose’s castle, while she had remained exactly the same. How long until I was an old woman, walking about, stooped and wizened… The very thought made me choke on my air. 

“What is it? What’s wrong?” Rose asked, gently putting her wet hand on my cheek. I looked at her. How long had it been since I had come to the castle? I had lost track. Months? A year? Longer? Time with Rose passed by so quickly and yet so slowly; I savored it and yet gorged myself on it. 

Gently, I pressed my hands against hers. “Rose?” I asked, voice hesitant. “What will happen when I die?” 

“I...I do not know how to answer that. But you have so many years left in you, Pearl. My Pearl. You are young yet.” Rose smiled, trying to ease my worry. 

I squeezed my eyes shut as tears began to fall from them. “What will happen to you when I am gone? Who will protect you?” I knew it was foolish to think that I, a mere mortal woman, did anything to protect the Duchess of the Vampire Court, but I liked to think that my training was not in vain. Surely there was a reason for it, other than to protect myself. 

As though reading my thoughts, Rose laughed. High and lovely. Oh, how I wanted to curl up in that laughter and keep it for my own! She pulled away from me; I instantly craved her touch even more. “Pearl. Please, listen to me. You are my friend, my companion. I wish for nothing more of you than your happiness. Do not think that you must protect me. I can protect myself.” She smiled at me. I reached forward, touching her lips with my thumb. Then I pulled my hand away, and we kissed once more. 

***

Garnet returned to us during the day. She was badly injured, but on the mend; it seemed that whatever she had become--this stitched-together creature--was able to regenerate using the magic from her duel gems. In her hand she carried the head of the golem. 

It was a twisted looking creature, all pieces thrown together and melded with magic. The gem at the center of the thing’s forehead had been cobbled together from shards of other gems. Pieces, Garnet told me, of other monsters. I shivered at the thought of being forced together after death with someone else. I supposed that, in that way, Garnet and the golem were not that different--save for one thing. Garnet was made of love. This...monstrosity was made of hate. 

Rose wanted to study the creature’s head and gem in more detail. I personally could not stomach it, so I excused myself to my studies. Aside from sword fighting, I had recently taken up learning to play the massive pipe organ Rose’s previous master had left behind. 

She had told me it had once created beautiful, haunting music that she had listened to as a child. I did not push that further--she seemed to hate to speak of past self--but instead listened as she told me of how her master--the woman that had changed her into a vampire--had taught her music in all forms. Rose had a hard time mastering anything other than song. So, when her master passed on, the grand organ was left to decay and rot away in the bowels of the castle. 

The library held books upon books upon tomes of how to properly clean the organ, on how to tune the thing, on how to repair it...I spent the night on it, caring for it, loving it, until my hands were more tired than they had been holding a sword. 

Then, slowly, carefully, I learned to play. It took months. Perhaps longer. Garnet often watched me, now that she had nothing better to do--her coven was gone, completely destroyed by the golem, and she was alone. Occasionally, I would ask her what she thought. She never replied outright, but I could tell that I was getting better at my new craft. There were nights, of course, when I would break from my new love of music and practice my sword fighting. Rose remained hidden, leaning all that she could from the golem’s head and gem. 

Finally, early one morning, sometime close to dawn, Rose reemerged from her personal study. She looked triumphant and upset at the same time. I went to her, looking up into her black eyes, waiting to listen to her voice. I had missed her so. We had only spoken a bit in passing, when she was either getting up from her coffin or falling into it to sleep. 

“The Diamond Court sent this golem,” she said finally, eyes closed. The words weighed heavily upon the air. “This is an act of war.” 

“The Diamond Court?” I asked, shivering. I remembered the brand that had once graced my skin. The Diamond Court was the combination of four kingdoms--Blue, White, Pink and Yellow. “That is impossible. They are just humans. What would they know of creating golems? Why would they attack a witch’s coven?” 

Rose smiled despite herself, touching the tip of my nose with her finger. “You are human as well, Pearl. Do not forget that. Besides, the Queens of the courts are not all human. The Yellow Queen and Pink Queen are vampires, like myself.” She sighed a little. “White is a werewolf, and Blue is of the spirit realm.” 

I blinked at this information. I had never seen the Queens, but I had always assumed that they were mortal beings. The mines I had once belonged to were owned in the Yellow Kingdom; Rose’s castle was in the neighboring Pink Kingdom. I have never traveled to the Blue or White Kingdoms, but I had learned recently that both were in the north, covered in snow year around. The Diamond Court was in the center of the lands, were the four touched, and served as a meeting ground for the Queens. 

A voice from behind me gave pause to my thinking. “We refused to align ourselves with the Kingdoms; the Coven was meant to be a safe haven for any magic user across the land,” Garnet said, stepping into the room. Her voice was filled with anger, though she was keeping it well in check. Her hands were loose at her sides. Her face was calm. I watched her, a frown on my own face. I did not understand what was happening, but I did know that it could not be anything good. 

“Please excuse us, Pearl. This is a matter that Rose and I need to speak of in private,” Garnet said. She did not look at me. Instead, she walked up to Rose and nodded. The two moved into Rose’s personal study, and shut the door.


	5. Rose and the Great War

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rose tells Pearl of days passed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Sorry that this chapter is so late! I have been dealing with a lot in my life. Chapters will be updating regularly now, however. Thanks for sticking with me. :)

I awoke early that night. The sun’s last stretches of marmalade colored rays were retreating behind the wide, high mountains that surrounded the castle. I watched the setting sun dip lower before dragging myself out of my luscious bed. The chill of my room hit me hard, right down to my bones. Shivering, I pulled on my night clothing--my usual black slacks, a light pink blouse embedded with ornate stitching of stars in gold, and a pair of black, leather riding boots--and, finally, my cloak. 

Once I was dressed, I slipped my pearl into my pocket, feeling the sure weight of it against my hip, and grabbed one of my swords from the rack I had installed on my bedroom wall a month or so prior. It held the swords I liked best. Rose had offered them to me, a gift, as well as the hard-won spear she had finally managed to purchase from the smithy. 

It was a beautiful thing, that spear. Its head was patterned, swirling halfway down the shaft. I almost swore that the metal was glass, considering the odd color of it and how sharp it was. Rose had explained to me that it was enchanted; once I had learned to wield it, I could summon it to my hand by merely thinking of it. 

Nearly three months had passed since the taking of the Golem. Rose and Garnet still studied its remains in secret, keeping me busy elsewhere in the castle. I often found myself retreating to the pipe organ, or learning to master the spear by myself. Rose would sometimes find me in the gardens and walk with me there; Garnet would sometimes find me half asleep at the organ’s keys. 

Setting my thoughts back on the night at hand, I considered what I could do for the evening. It was still too dangerous to go into town, so that idea was out, although I would not have minded new reading material. The dusty tomes in the library had caught my interest, but I still craved a larger selection. A stroll through the garden to ease my mind and awaken my body sounded like a nice idea, after I had eaten something. 

After rolling my shoulders to loosen them up, I left my bedroom and walked the empty halls. My footfalls echoed down the corridors, reminding me of how alone I was. Would it hurt to ask Rose to spend the night with me, instead of allowing her to continue her research on the Golem’s head? I instantly felt guilty at the thought. 

Before I could think of anything else, however, Rose stepped out from one of the many rooms in the hall. I stopped short, nearly running into her. “Oh, Pearl.” She sounded tired, and her eyes were glimmering black holes in her head. I wondered when the last time she had truly rested was. “I am sorry for not spending much time with you. I...We...Garnet and I...it’s complicated.” She sighed a little, using her hand to toss some of her long, pink curls of hair over her shoulder. 

I bowed my head. “I understand,” I found myself saying, though I honestly had no idea what was really going on--aside from the fact that the Diamond Court was more than it seemed, and had specifically targeted the coven. I laced my fingers together in front of me. “I was hoping to catching you, in all honesty. I would like for us to walk in the gardens, but I understand if you are busy…” 

With a smile, Rose Quartz shook her head. “No, not at all. I needed to get out of that stuffy room for a while, anyway. A walk will do me some good.” Gently, she took my hands and started for the castle’s main doors. 

We walked and chatted about nothing particular; the weather, the flowers that were in full bloom all year long, the stars in the sky...It felt nice and peaceful, though there was always a tug-tug at the back of my mind. Finally, I opened my mouth, and spoke. 

“Rose...If the Diamond Court sent the Golem, what does that mean? For us?” I did not look at her as I spoke. 

Without skipping a beat, Rose said, “A war.” 

I stopped, dead in my tracks. A war. She had said it so simply, so easily. A war. “What--how--?”

Grimly, Rose shook her head. “I have seen war before, Pearl. It is not beautiful. It is full of death and decay. I want to do everything within my power to stop that from happening again. The loss of life…” She looked down at the ground, her hair covering her eyes. I could only see her lips as they moved when she spoke. “War is the most disgusting thing in this universe.”

I reached out, taking her hand in my own. I squeezed gently, looking at her, trying to see her eyes. It was a moot point, however. She turned her face from me, looking at a bed of violets. “Rose...what happened in the wars that you won’t tell me? Please...let me in, Rose.”

“Pearl...my Pearl. My beautiful Pearl. I would never want anything to happen to you. Maybe I’m selfish for thinking that I could protect you forever.” She sighed. “From me, from the Diamond Court...Maybe I was stupid for saving you, that day, so long ago now.” 

My lips parted. “You mean you regret me? You regret saving me from the slavers?”

“No. I regret being me. I regret getting you caught up in this mess. But it is too late now.” She finally lifted her head, and looked me in the eyes. Coal black met ice blue for a moment, just a moment, and then she looked ahead of us. “I fought in a war, long ago, to save humanity.”

She looked to the stars then, holding herself as though against the cold of night. “It was a terrible war, Pearl. Many good humans and monsters died then, thousands of years ago. I fought for peace. I fought because I was young and thought I was a Goddess, someone who everyone could look to and worship as a divine leader. Because of my foolishness…” She shook her head, tears spilling down her cheeks. 

“What happened?” I whispered. I was afraid; there was so much to ask, and yet, to ask it would hurt Rose. I needed to know. I wanted to know. 

With a heavy sigh, Rose turned her head away from me again. “Once, long ago, there were many more humans than monsters. We were captured, tortured, put on display as freaks. Then, the four Queens rose up in power. They struck down the human kings and queens of the four Kingdoms, and took over. It created a war between humanity and monster kind. I...I was freshly turned, having been raised since birth to be the new Duchess when the time came for my mistress to leave. She had grown tired of this world, and left it with a stake through her heart and a smile upon her lips.” Pausing, Rose shook her head. “I was foolish. I was stupid. I fought the humans, killing without remorse. It was what the Queens wanted.” She looked down at her hands. 

“But you have changed!” I said firmly, reaching out to take her hand in my own. “Whatever darkness you did in your life is in the past.”

“Darkness never leaves. It only grows.” Rose brought my fingers to her lips, kissing them gently. Then she dropped my hands all together. “My Pearl...I was a monster, in the truest of definitions. A hell-beast. A demon. Once the war was won, with the monsters having beat back the humans, the Queens took their respective thrones and I was heralded as a hero. It was only after the war that I realized my mistake.”

I listened, lips parted and teeth clenched. This was not the Rose I had come to know. My Rose was soft and kind and gentle--until I remembered the night she fed from me. I shivered, touching my neck where she had bitten me. 

“I settled down in this castle to take up where my mistress had left off. I had humans who waited on me hand and foot. I became attached to them--all of my servants--and had to watch them die, one by one, from old age. I fell in love.” 

At those words, I gasped. “You...loved someone?”

She smiled a little. “Many someones. I fell in love with human after human. There is a long list of people that I have loved during my existence.” Rose looked to me, her eyes full of sadness. I realized that I was on that list. It pained my heart and excited me at the same time. I was loved by the most amazing woman in the world, and yet, one day, she would find someone new. 

“Why didn’t you turn any of them?” I asked, voice a little bitter. 

Gently, she stroked my hair. “For the same reason I will not turn you. Pearl...humanity is a beautiful thing. Living, dying… It is something that I will never truly understand. I will never truly feel it myself. I don’t want to deprive you of living.” She laughed a little. “Besides, sometimes, I feel too old.” 

We continued to walk in silence after that. At some point, Garnet joined us. She pointed out star patterns, explaining how certain alignments meant different things for the future. After a time, Rose excused herself, explaining that it was getting late--or early, rather--and wanted a good day’s rest. I sighed a little, watching her retreating form. Then I felt a hand on my shoulder. I looked up to see Garnet looking down at me, all three eyes focused on my face. 

“Yes?” I asked, blinking a little under my friend’s stare. I gently put my hand on top of Garnet’s, feeling her warmth. It felt nice and calming--soothing. It took me a moment to realize that some of the stitched-together woman’s magic was seeping into me to relax me somewhat. 

Garnet’s plump lips parted slightly, then pulled up sideways in a smile. “Rose loves you,” she said simply. Then, in her quiet way, she looked passed me at a thorny bush of flowers. “And you love her. Love...finds a way.”

“Tell that to all of the humans she’s loved,” I snapped, feeling irritable despite the spell she was trying to place on me. 

“She’s never loved them like she loves you.”

That gave me pause. I blinked a few times. “How would you know?”

Laughing a little, Garnet shook her head. “Just trust me,” she said gently. “For you...she would do anything.”

In the distance, a wolf howled. I looked up at the moon--full and pregnant in the sky, with a bit of a rust colored hue tainting it red. I turned to Garnet then to ask her what it meant, but she was gone, leaving me alone in the darkness of the garden.


	6. If I Should Die Tonight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The war begins between the Diamond Court and those that support Rose's cause. Pearl has grown as a warrior, but will it be enough to save Rose from death--and herself?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: This chapters might feel a little disjointed from the rest, and I do apologize for writing it rather quickly. Please ignore any spelling or grammar mistakes that might linger in this chapter; I needed to write it fast and furious while the story and emotion was still in my head. Thanks for the understand. 
> 
> The next chapter will contain a lot of gore. You are warned.

A war. We were on the brink of another war, this time of monsters fighting monsters instead of monsters battling humans. Why? Why would the Diamond Court, rulers of the four Kingdoms, attack other magic users? As I stalked back and forth in my room, I asked myself a million questions and a million more. 

Passing by the mirror, I caught my reflection. My pale skin and sunken eyes greeted me. I had not slept since that night in the garden. It had been three days. I had not seen Rose nor Garnet; both had become impossible to track down. Instead, I was left alone and to myself. 

Just to have something to do, I took my spear into my hands. I worked my fingers down the shaft, coming to the bladed end. It cut into my palm, deep enough to draw blood. I did not drop the weapon; I simply stared at the blood dripping down my hand. Slowly, carefully, I brought it to my lips. My tongue darted out and lapped at the hot, scarlet liquid. 

The pearl, resting on my bedside table, started to shimmer slightly. I blinked at it, stupidly. My hand dropped to my side, and the pearl became dull again. With a shiver, I shook my head. I retreated into my bathing room to bandage my hand. 

The bleeding stopped within the hour, thankfully. I felt trapped in my skin, however. I hated it. I walked the halls of the castle at length, stopping in front of Rose’s study many times. At one point, I even raised my hand to knock. Biting my lip, I retreated to the library, hissing and sputtering at myself. 

I hated it. 

Feeling like a bird trapped in a beautiful cage, I sat on a window ledge, looking out upon the forest and mountains surrounding Rose’s lands. Worrying my lip with my thumb, I thought. Rose had once been a demon. She had killed without remorse, without thought, all because of the Diamond Court. Now, they had sent a Golem to destroy those that had not sided with them--to kill those that were protected by Rose Quartz. Only Garnet remained. 

What would happen now? Would the Diamonds move to harm Rose, or would they simply drop the matter? I could only hope for the former, though I knew the latter was the more probable. I sighed, rubbing at my temples. I could feel a massive headache coming on. 

“Pearl?” Rose called my name from down the hall. I looked up, blinking a few times stupidly. It was the first time in three days that she had appeared to me. I quickly got off of the window ledge and followed her voice to the main hallway. “Oh, there you are. I was worried you had left.” 

“This is my home,” I said softly. “Where would I go?”

The vampire smiled gently, then spotted the bandage on my hand. Instantly, she snatched me up and looked at my injury. “What is this? Who hurt you?!”

I could not help but laugh. “No one. I was clumsy with my spear. My head was elsewhere while I held it.” Gently, she put me down, but watched me as I reapplied the bandage. “I thought you might have left me; I haven’t seen you or Garnet.” 

Rose shook her head, all of her curls bouncing with the movement. “I would never leave you, my Pearl. No. Garnet and I have been distracted. We…” She frowned then, dipping her head a little. “We believe that the Diamond Court wishes to wage war upon the humans again. Since I am neutral territory now...They will wish for me to choose a side. I will side with the humans.” Her words were so firm that they left me in awe. “They do not have magic, and are more or less slaves to the Queens. I can no longer watch as humans suffer.” 

I fell to one knee, kneeling before her, my head bowed. “I will follow you, Rose. I will follow you to the ends of the Earth, if that is your wish. I will fight beside you, for you.”

“I can’t ask that of you, Pearl.”

“You don’t have to.” 

When I lifted my head, she was smiling, tears in her black eyes. “Pearl,” she said, my name so gentle and soft in her mouth. The tears swelled and fell down her cheeks. She shook her head, then held her hand out to me to help me to my feet. I gently took it, feeling her warmth, her love, radiating from her. “You may die.” 

“If I do,” I said softly, “do not cry. You told me that humanity is beautiful because it is of life and death; think of my life that way.” 

***

War was upon us more quickly than we could think. 

Within the next year, an army had been raised. Rose Quartz walked among the troops at night, watching the men and women of the human army practice. She taught anyone who was willing to fight the Diamond Courts how to handle a sword. Soon, we had tent after tent after tent of warriors when Rose’s gardens had been, all around her castle and spreading into the lands where the coven had once stood. We were at the center, the very heart, of the Pink Kingdom. 

Rose gathered allies from the other Kingdoms--Blue, White and Yellow--who were willing to take up arms against the oncoming threat. 

And the Queens made their presences known. 

Soon, huge, hulking monsters made their way into Rose’s lands, killing and fighting anything that got into their way. More Golems came at first, then warriors of the Vampire Court. Ghouls and Werewolves ripped out the throats of our warriors. 

For the first time in my life, I saw war. I saw death and destruction. I saw battle. 

Rose was always careful to keep me away from the front lines while she, herself, took down the enemies one after another. I heard through way of mouth of her valiant strategies and fierce battle tactics. Some of our troops started to call her the Lioness in Armor. 

I had a few kills under my belt, but I secretly longed to fight beside the woman who had won my heart. 

Garnet fought, too, using magic when she was needed. More often than not, the three of us were split up. I lead the regiments meant as cavalry. We did not see battle that often. Garnet and Rose lead the majority of the troops, along with some of Rose’s allies from the other Kingdoms. 

I learned how to use my spear quickly, and it was a great asset. With it in my hands, I felt undefeatable. Still, I favored the swords, and often switched to them while in the heat of battle. 

It was early one morning that my regiment was summoned to the front lines. I was in shock. Rose’s last message had hinted that the war was nearly over, nearly won. Why would she need backup now? Had the Diamonds unleashed something terrible, something that had defeated her? I rallied my troops, worry furrowing my brow. Morning was the worst time of day for the vampires that had sided with us. Sleepy and sluggish, it was hard for them to move, to march. Yet we could not wait until nightfall. There was an urgency in the voice of the courier that I could not ignore. 

I longed for Rose, for Garnet’s guidance. I did not have either luxury. I had to make the decision. Standing before my regiment, I bowed my head before speaking in a strong voice I did not know I possessed. 

“We fight in the name of Rose Quartz!” I shouted. “We have seen battle, though very little of it. Now, we are to go to the front lines to aid her troops.” I raised my spear above my head, letting the sunlight glint off of the blade. “We will march as soon as possible; because of this, I ask that the vampires stay behind to stay as fresh as possible. Everyone else--with me!” 

There were cheers. I felt my pale cheeks grow hot. I had gone from a simple slave to one of the leaders of Rose’s army in the matter of a few years. I held my breath as I mounted my horse. It had taken me a few days to learn to ride. Now, I took to the front of my troops, ready to lead them into battle. 

There were roughly one hundred men and women under my command, now that the vampires had stayed put. There were humans, werewolves, ghouls and magic users among my warriors. I felt no fear among them; there was no need to. I knew all of their names. I knew all of their faces. I knew that many of them had family, friends. Lovers. There was very little difference between some of them and myself. 

We marched in the heat of day to the front lines, passing more and more corpses and shattered gems as we grew closer, closer. By noon, we had reached a plain. There were tents scattered, here and there. A battle had obviously gone on recently here; the stench of blood was too much for me as it baked under the high sun. Once I had dismounted from my horse, I vomited. I noted that a few of my troop members did the same, trying to hide it. 

“Hold,” I ordered, carefully summoning my spear to my side. I used it to poke at some of the bodies of the dead. No movement. I stepped up to one of the tents as Rose poked her head out. The sun burned at her fair skin, maring it black until I pushed her back inside of the safety of the shade. “What happened?” I asked, my voice just a whisper. Outside, I overheard Garnet give orders to my men and women. 

“We fought them back,” Rose said firmly, tears running down the scorched portion of her face. Almost instantly, she was healed and as beautiful as ever. “They retreated, but not for long. Garnet foresaw a terrible battle. We have to prevent that from happening. That’s why I called for you and your regiment. We will need as many fighters as possible tonight.” 

I nodded. “What did Garnet see?” I asked. 

Rose bit her lip, shaking her head. “She saw my death.”

I gasped, quickly clutching Rose’s body to my own. She was so much larger than me, it was hard to hold her to my slim body. Still, I clung to her, holding her and kissing her throat. “I will not allow it!” I snarled. My eyes were set. Finally, I let her go. “Let me fight by your side, Rose. I will make sure nothing happens to you.”

Gently, Rose put her hand on my head. She stroked my face, her fingers tenderly running down to my chin. “Pearl, my Pearl,” she whispered. “I need you, now more than ever.” 

Nodding, I smiled weakly at her. “We can be strong,” I whispered. “I will be strong, for you.” 

“That is what I need most, Pearl. I need you. I need your strength.” We held each other again for a moment, tears and kisses swapped between us, and waited for the evening--for our deaths, or for the rest of our lives. 

With a roar, the Queens’ army was upon us. I stood, finally with Rose, at the front of the battlefield. Garnet was nearby, readying the warriors for the fight. I held my spear, feeling the weight of it in my hand. My armor shone brightly in the light of the setting sun’s fiery sky. Beside me, Rose’s armor shimmered like the universe. We grimly looked at each other, nodding. Then we dove into the battle, ready to kill or be killed. 

For love.

For justice.

For peace. 

We fought. 

And, on that battlefield, on that night under the vast, black sky, I died.


	7. Bathed in Blood

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pearl sees the front lines for herself, and becomes a killing machine. When Rose is in trouble, will she be there in time to save her?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: There is a lot of violence and gore in this chapter. There will probably be more in upcoming chapters as well.

I had never seen battle like this before. The Diamond Queens were throwing out their strongest fighters, their most powerful warriors. Death swirled around me. I was splattered with blood from the onset of the fight; archers took out those around me with swift, silent arrows. In the midsts of the battle, Rose, Garnet and I were split. Those loyal to our cause died around me as I fought, spear in hand, forward. 

Forward, ever forward. I could not, for one moment, look back. I had to see everything. I had to move before the enemy had the chance to strike me down. I saw them as death machines; certainly, they must have seen me as the same. 

Blood stained my armor and my spear; my hands were sticky with the stuff. I breathed it in, gulped it down. There was nothing in the world but rivers of blood, drifting down into the Earth. I stepped forward, slicing down an enemy; she screamed loudly, fingers raking forward to attempt to get at my throat. Sidestepping her, I took on her comrade as he charged me. I saw fear in his exposed eyes before I brought up my spear and lanced the orbs with a sickly sound. 

I ripped my blade upward, cutting through the man’s head and helmet. Pathetic. I almost grinned with glee at how easily some of these warriors were defeated. I was like the wind, like water; I flowed easily through the masses. They were weak because they only saw me as a human; I was stronger than them because I knew I was more. 

No longer was I Pearl. No. In that battle, I became something more. Rose had called herself a demon for what she had done years ago during her first battles. I was becoming the same. Every kill became a song that only my lips and tongue could sing. My battle hymn floated over the heads of the warriors around me, strengthening my friends and wearing down those who wished to see me dead. 

I slung my spear over my shoulder, taking out an enemy who had attempted to attack me from behind. When I turned to her, my sword was in my other hand, ready to gut her like a fish. I yelled with all of my strength, and cut into her smooth stomach. Organs flooded from her body, plodding onto the ground. I stepped on them, getting into her face so I could watch the life leave her eyes. 

Once she was gone, I thrust my spear into others. I used one hand to wield my sword, and the other for my spear. Monster after monster fell to my blades. Eventually, the corrupt started to appear before me. The Diamonds must have been getting worried. I grinned like a maniac. 

A flash of pink stopped my hands. Rose Quartz stood on the battlefield, her armor stained with blood. At some point, her helmet had been lost, leaving her head uncovered and vulnerable. She was fighting, tooth and nail, against three Golems. Hacking at them with her sword, she snarled, eyes darker than the night and fill with more hate than Hell itself. Her beautiful face was twisted into a grimace. She was losing ground, and fast. 

As swiftly as I could, I rushed to her side. There were a few monsters here and there that I had to strike down before I could reach her. Every second counted. Every moment felt like an eternity. 

I screamed a war cry, throwing my spear through one of the Golems’ heads. It snarled and roared through a mouth I could not see. It turned its ugly, twisted body in my direction as I brought up my sword. The smooth warmth of my pearl heated my hip, where I had kept it in a satchel to better fuel me on the battlefield. 

“No!” Rose shouted as I clashed with the beast. I ripped into it with my sword while my other hand reached for my spear. I summoned it into my palm before attacking again. The other Golems did not notice me or did not care; either way, they continued their assault on Rose. “Pearl, fall back!” 

“I refuse!” I cried. My voice was mangled and sounded very much like a snarl. With one, fluid motion, I sliced my sword’s blade through the Golem’s head. It dropped to the ground with a thud as black, hot liquid squirted from what had been its neck. Triumphant, I stood over it, then looked to Rose.

With a hiss, I lunged again, ready to defend her. I moved between her shield and the Golems, my sword arm ready and my spear aimed to throw. An inhuman growl rocked my core; I swung the sword in my hand. 

The Golem in front dodged, then moved straight for my exposed middle. Its claws went through my armor, digging in deeply to my stomach and chest. Blood spurted from my mouth as I stared stupidly down at myself. The monster did not stop there, however. With its claws still inside of my body, it lifted me up into the air, then tossed me aside to deal with Rose. 

My body crashed to the ground, the force of the Golem’s throw snapping my spine. I tried to scream, but instead of sound, only blood escaped my lips. Everything else seemed so far away, so distant. I could still hear the battle rage on around me, but I could not feel anything nor see. Broken, I remained on the ground, my blood seeping out of me.

The pearl in my satchel grew hot, pulsing in time with my dying heart. 

I gasped. I felt the hot, thick air slip through my body, rushing out of a hole in one of my lungs. Twisted on the ground, I heard rather than saw or felt one of the Golems trample what was left of me as it retreated away. 

I heard someone weeping as I lay, dying. There was no pain. Only...only…

Darkness. 

***

Rose screamed. All of her rage, all of her love and hate and emotion poured from her mouth as she opened up on the Golems. The two that remained watched her as cats watched their prey. Waiting. It was a game to them. Life was nothing more than a game. 

Fury in her breast, she struck. Once, twice, again and again, hacking through one of the Golems as though it was nothing but tissue paper. Black wetness spurted out of it as it collapsed. Then Rose turned her attention to the last one standing. It backed up, shaking a little. The game had ended. There were no more turns left.

Another scream, and Rose flew at the beast. It shivered, then charged her as well; they collided headlong, her sword spearing its chest. She sliced upward, cleaving the monstrosity in two pieces. It swayed as though still alive. When it fell, Rose sheathed her sword. 

Her hands shook. “Pearl?” It was a whisper at first, then a begging command. “Pearl!” The Golem had attacked. It had gored her, cut open her stomach. Where was she now? Where was--

This was not the future Garnet had foretold. 

“There will be a battle between you and three Golems,” Garnet had told her. “You will die in that battle. Every foreseeable future leads up to that point.” Her voice had been grim, but she did not waver in her speech. “If you stay away from that battle, you will live.”

Instead, Rose was left to look upon the body of her lover, her Pearl. Tears rolled down her face as she kneeled beside the pale woman’s broken and beaten body. They splashed like raindrops onto Pearl’s opened stomach, her healing abilities trying to find purchase. “Pearl!” Rose screamed, holding her tightly to herself as she wept. The other woman did not move. Her heart no longer beat within her chest 

“Not you. Anyone but you,” Rose breathed, sobbing harder. “You saved me only to die yourself? No! I will not...I won’t!” She hefted the corpse up, carrying her to a secluded spot, away from the din of war. “Not you...Please…” 

Here, Rose Quartz came to a crossroad. She could save the life of her lover, of Pearl, of the woman she trusted with the world, or she could allow her to slip forever into the river of death. Never once had she turned a human into a monster; never once had she loved someone so deeply that she would consider it. 

There was still a spark left within her lover. She knew it. She could smell it, feel it. Gently, she leaned down, lapping at Pearl’s throat. Tears continued to fall from her black eyes as she bit down deeply into the pale skin. The gem in her stomach shimmered brightly, pushing magic and love and life and laughter through Rose’s body. She drank her fill, shivering as she did so. 

Then, carefully, she bit her own wrist, pushing the swell of blood to Pearl’s lips. “Please. Drink. Please, my Pearl. My beautiful Pearl. Drink.” 

***

I felt dizzy. Something pulled me out of the darkness--a spider’s string. It was thin and delicate, but it was there, holding me to life’s breast. I shivered a little, then started to suckle. Something hot and delicious was waiting for me as my mouth started to work. 

Slowly, slowly, the fog lifted from my eyes. I could dimly see Rose Quartz above me, sobbing and calling my name. I wanted to touch her face, to tell her I was fine. I could not move, however. Only my mouth seemed to work, and that was to lap up the fine wine being poured passed my lips. No, that wasn’t right--it was more than wine. Something otherworldly, something with power and love embedded into it. I could hear the laughter of children in the back of my thoughts. 

I lingered somewhere between life and death for some time. My body was destroyed--of that, I was certain. My soul was still there, still attached. The more I drank, the hungrier I became. That kept me rooted in the living world. Yet, something attempted to pull me back. The sweet, lingering perfume of death wrapped its will around me. Never in my existence had I wanted to close my eyes, to simple give up. At that moment, however, it was a struggle to not fall back into the depths of dying. 

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Rose’s free hand start to search my belongings. My spear lay broken beside me, and my sword was nowhere to be seen. I carried little else on my being--just the satchel containing the pearl. It had fueled me, powered me for so long. I considered it an old friend. 

Rose looked at me, through me. She looked into my soul, and then made the hardest choice in her life. 

Tenderly, she pressed the smooth, white pearl to my forehead. It burned into my skin, digging deeper and deeper into my head until I swore I could feel it attach itself to my brain. I wanted to screamed, to cry, to rage, but Rose’s sweet, hot blood soothed me into a deep, deep slumber from which I was not sure I would awaken. 

***

“We’ve lost the battle,” a voice hissed from above. Amethyst turned, her ears flat against her head. She was short, even for a woman, and stalky. That didn’t matter, however. She could wield a whip better than any of the other members of her pack, and what she lacked in height she made up for in speed and skill. 

With a sharp bark, she shook her head. “It ain’t my fault.”

“No. I suppose not.” Her alpha turned his back to her, to the battlefield. “Rose Quartz yet lives. This war is far from over, but she and her men gain more ground every day. It won’t be long until the Queens flee from their court.”

Amethyst scratched behind her ear, feeling her soft hair through her clawed fingers. “I don’t understand why our pack had to side with them, anyway.” 

The alpha snarled. “It wasn’t by choice. It was by necessity.” He sighed deeply, looking to the other members of his pack. Seventeen pairs of eyes looked back at him, including Amethyst’s. She watched him for some time, and even listened when he barked orders to the omega of the pack to fall back and see if any of the troops they had sent out had survived. 

Carefully, Amethyst climbed up an incline of rock. There was a nice plateau from which she could look down upon the rest of her crew. Her pack. Her family. She sighed a little, scratching behind her furry ear again. Damn fleas!

“Full moon tomorrow, y’all,” she said, smirking, before curling up to sleep. Tomorrow, Rose Quartz’s army wouldn’t know what hit them.


	8. Amethyst

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A brief chapter detailing Amethyst's life as a werewolf.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: This chapter was very difficult for me to write. It isn't easy for me to get into Amethyst's head, which is why I kept this portion of the narrative in third person instead of switching into first person for Amethyst. After all, in the end, this is really Pearl's story. I hope you enjoy what I have written, however.

“It’s just a quick bite. Then we push the gem into your chest, into your flesh, and the magic will take over from there.” 

Like anything is that simple, right? Amethyst bowed her head, looking down at the dirt flooring of the well lived in den. The smell of the earth was all around her. It reeked of dogs as well, and a little bit of stale blood. Things had happened in this den. There was more to it than just living there--things died here, things were born here. 

“So...I gotta ask. Why me?” Amethyst looked up into the eyes of the man that would become her alpha--her leader, and master. “Outta all of those slaves? Why me?”

The man barked out a laugh, his wolf-like ears swiveling on his head until they were laying flat against his greasy hair. When he stopped laughing, his mate looked over at the two of them and answered for him. “You’re small yet, pup, but there is a fire in you.” 

The alpha laughed again. “It’s true! When I saw you, I knew you’d be perfect.” 

Thinking on this for a moment, Amethyst sighed. “Okay. I don’t really have a choice in this, right? I mean, it’s this or death.” Death had sounded pretty good at one point in her life...and then she had met that woman. Pale, waiflike and beautiful. She sighed again, thinking of her nameless love. If she became a werewolf, if she survived all of this, couldn’t she perhaps find her again? That thought alone gave her hope. 

The alpha smirked. “Are you ready to join the pack, Amethyst?” 

“Yeah. I guess so.” 

It was a painful process. The bite, first of all, was administered by the alpha’s mate--the alpha female. She was a little ruthless. The bite was messy and hurt; Amethyst felt like a million razors had been pushed into her skin. She screamed; oh, she had screamed profanity after profanity until her voice was hoarse and it was impossible for her to even whisper another word. 

Once the alpha female had finished with her, Amethyst was dropped to the ground, her blood soaking into the well packed earth. She cringed, holding her injured arm tightly to her body. Already she could feel the power, the venom of the bite racing through her blood. It left her light headed and giddy; she barely even felt the purple stone being pushed into her chest. It wasn’t until the thing secured itself in her flesh that she screamed again. 

The spread of magic through her core ached. It hit her heart hard, like a bolt of lightning splitting a tree in two. Everything human inside of her told her to scratch it out, to rip the thing out, even if it was attached to her heart now. Wildfire charged like raging bulls through her veins, sinking into every piece of her being.

There was a flash of white pain in her head, and it was over. 

Dizzy from the change and weak from the blood loss, Amethyst crawled on all fours to one wall of the cave, where she curled up and slept for nearly a week. 

***

The first hunt was amazing. 

It happened on the first full moon after Amethyst’s transformation. Though all werewolves could shapeshift into a half being at any given point--and to be honest, most kept that change just to show what they were and to keep the heightened senses around--only on the full moon could they shed their human skin completely and transform into powerful, bloodthirsty monsters of the night. 

Her pack howled to the night sky, waiting for the changes to come over them. Amethyst licked her lips, then added her voice to the pack’s song. She arched her back, throwing her head toward the sky, and let loose. 

Slowly, one by one, the werewolves around her began to change. 

The alphas shifted first, the power of their gems compelling them to burst out of their human vessels as quickly as possible. It was a terrible sight to behold; one moment, the two of them were humanoid forms. The next, in a spray of blood and flesh being pulled from bone, they changed. The crunching of their bones made Amethyst whince, but she continued to watch, eyes wide and ears forward. This was what she had become. This was like breathing, like running through the forest at full speed. This was life. 

Soon, two huge wolf-like creatures had taken the places of the alphas. They grinned and circled on another, yipping and barking like demonic hounds. Then they waited, watching the rest of the pack. 

One by one, the others began to change. There were roughly thirty werewolves, all told. Amethyst could feel the change rising up inside of her, bubbling in her belly. It fought her human side--or what was left of it--and rose up into her throat until she let it out with a solid snarling howl. Others joined her as they, too, changed. 

Amethyst her bones creak and groan as they grew, stretching and ripping her skin in places. It simply did not grow fast enough to cover her new frame. It hurt, but it was more thrilling to her than anything else. She wanted it. Oh, how she craved it. 

By the time her fur covered her body, she was shaking. Her claws raked into the earth, pawing at it. She let another inhuman howl, then started to pace back and forth between her alphas, who watched her firmly, and the other members of her pack, who she had learned to get along with. None of them were ‘friends,’ but they were all unified as an odd sort of extended family. It was simply how things worked. 

No longer did they need words to communicate. Everything was done instinctively by body movements, by little grunts and growls. The alphas were ready. They moved to the opening to the den, looking back over their shoulders at the others. Waiting. 

Amethyst jumped at the opportunity to hunt something other than the mice that were unlucky enough to burrow through the den walls. Her stomach growled. There was not much in the way of food, save for on full moon nights, when, she had been told, the pack hunted deer, humans...anything that moved until they were so full their guts almost touched the floor. Amethyst shivered at the thought of devouring anything she could find. The lack of food had driven her nearly insane. 

The female alpha gave a warning yip before darting out of sight. The male followed after her, sniffing the air. Amethyst sniffed, too, and smelled something she had never noticed before. Her brain instantly told her it was food. That was all that mattered. 

Drooling, she took off after the alphas, the rest of her pack quick on her heels. She was small for a wolf, but she certainly made up for it in speed. She was the first one to spot the huge elk after the alphas, and the first to dart up to it. It was massive, even to one of her kind. The alphas circled around to its behind while Amethyst snapped her jaws at its throat. The elk made a piercing sound, then ducked down to try to catch Amethyst on its antlers. 

Darting back, Amethyst snarled. She darted here and there, keeping the beast’s attention while her alphas charged. The elk was too stupid to look behind it, and lost its life because of that mistake. Pleased with how the newly turned wolf had worked to bring down the elk, the alphas allowed her to eat after they had gorged themselves on the best pieces of meat. The rest of the pack had to wait their turn. 

The night continued. The pack hunted and hunted and hunted until every last member--even the thin, straggly omega--had eaten more than their fill. After returning to the den, Amethyst flopped onto the floor, huffing. She curled up, licking the blood from her lavender fur, and fell asleep. 

In the morning, the smell of a visitor caught her nose’s attention. 

Having returned to her almost human shape, she got up and stretched some. Her back ached from the packed dirt floor, but she made no protest against it. Instead, she used her newfound agility to jump up onto a small ledge above the opening to the cave, and listened. 

“My Diamond,” the alpha male was saying. Amethyst strained her ears. 

“Should this become a conflict, I will need your pack to participate in the war.” 

The alphas here silent for a moment. “Yes, my Diamond,” the female finally said, though her voice wavered a little. “Do you believe the coven will put up a fight?” 

More silence. Then, the mystery voice continued. “I do not know at this time. It is my hope that the Golem will be more than enough to wipe that filthy excuse for a magical meeting grounds off the face of this planet. Should Rose Quartz become involved, however, she will need to be dealt with.” There was another pause. Amethyst flicked her ear, still listening, but growing bored. After the night prior, she assumed her pack could take on anything. If this person was asking for help in killing someone, or a group of people, then it should be a piece of cake. 

After a few minutes, the voices grew hushed, and Amethyst grew sleepy once more. She fell asleep on the ledge, and did not awaken again until nightfall. 

***

Time passed by in a rush. There was so much for Amethyst to learn. How to hunt properly, how to kill, the weakest points of each type of food...She took it all in and reveled in it. No other member of the pack dared to fight her, full moon or no. Eventually, she learned how to handle a whip, simply because it was something new to try. 

And slowly, slowly, the thoughts of her beloved, pale, nameless beauty fell from her mind until she could not even recall the woman’s face. 

Years passed. Talk of war was suddenly upon everyone’s lips. She grinned, ready to take on the world if it meant a fully belly and something to do. Everything was about her pack, about her family. And she was fine with that. 

After all, what more could a werewolf want?


	9. Fangs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pearl is saved, thanks to Rose, but can she live as a vampire during a war? What happens with the past catches up with her?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I will probably be updating this twice a week from now on. It works better with my scheduling. These war chapters are a little difficult for me to write, as I have trouble writing action or picturing it in my mind. Also, I've never been in a physical fight before, so if it seems clunky, I apologize. 
> 
> I would like to thank everyone that has given me kudos on this project! It really helps to spur me on. Thank you for the comments as well.

I awoke feeling drained. Every inch of my being was heavy as though weighed down by lead. The entirety of my head pounded. Groggy, I tried to lift my hand to look at it, but only felt darkness and saw nothing but black before me. 

There was a minor tingle in the back of my throat. I felt the urge to vomit suddenly, to expel everything in my system, including my internal organs. Bile was building in my mouth, my throat, burning and yearning to be set free. Yet, when I parted my lips, nothing came of it. 

Blinking, I attempted to clear my vision of the darkness before it, but to no avail. Perhaps it was night--the darkest night in the history of the universe, but it was possible. There were no stars, there was no moon. Only myself, the pain, and the throbbing in my head. It was then, and only then, that I realized something was missing from myself. Puzzled, I ran my hands--still heavy and mostly numb--down my body. No. Nothing seemed to be gone. I was still all there. It was something more. Something inside of me.

My wandering fingers touched my cold forehead, and I pulled back. There was a bump there, in the middle of my forehead, that had not been there before. It was cold to the touch, yet it hummed with energy. I idly wondered if that was the source of the pounding ache. Brushing it with my fingertips felt oddly erotic; I felt myself tense in other places. With a swallow that tasted of ash, I attempted to pull the object out of me.

Instantly, pain rushed my head. I tried to scream, but no sound came out of my lungs. Lungs? I realized then that I was not--and had not been--breathing at all. I gasped in a quick breath, but it felt like nothing. It hurt to breathe, to drink down the air. I let it out and tried again. A little less pain, but it was still enough to cause me to pause. 

My fingernails gripped at the object firmly planted in my forehead. I tugged again upon it, whimpering now. No. It was lodged in my skin, in my skull. There was no way to remove the alien object. 

I began to feel my way around my surroundings. It was cold, wherever I was, and damp. My fingers brushed some sort of wall. Blinking, I tried to sit up, forcing myself through the pain, but found that there was a wooden plank or something of the link preventing me from sitting up. With a slight groan, I pushed against it with my hands. 

“She’s awake,” came a familiar voice as I managed to throw off the wooden lid. Garnet peered down at me, hands crossed over her chest. Everything about her was too bright to focus upon. I hissed slightly, covering my eyes with my forearm. Instantly, I longed for the darkness I had just awoken from. “Pearl.” Garnet said my name gently, her hands now close to me. I could feel the heat of her body penetrate the chill covering my own. 

“What?” I asked, coughing a little. My throat was parched and my tongue felt like sand. I tried to swallow but only ended up hurting my throat more. Something was wrong with the shape of my mouth as well. Slowly, I ran my tongue over my teeth. 

I smelled her. Rose. I lifted my head to look again, and there she was, in the shadows of the tent. There was a great sadness about her. It washed over me, threatening to swallow me up and drown me. “Rose--” I started, but felt sharpness on my tongue. Carefully, I touched my teeth with my fingers and felt fangs. 

“I had to,” Rose Quartz whispered. I could see tears streaming from her beautiful black eyes. “I had to, Pearl. My Pearl. I couldn’t allow you to die. I had to.” Weeping, she hugged herself tightly. “Please, forgive me.” 

Slowly, slowly, the memories of the battle between Rose, the three Golems, and myself slipped back into my mind. There had been a terrible pain. I could remember that, but the other details were fuzzy. I closed my eyes for a moment, then opened them to look between Rose and Garnet. “How long have I been asleep?” I asked softly.

“Two nights,” Garnet replied, her voice flat. “And you were not asleep. You were dead.” 

My breathing hitched slightly. My hands fumbled to clutch at my chest, realizing what had been missing. My heartbeat. It was gone; there was nothing moving in my chest. Again, my fingers crawled over my face, touching the thing firmly planted in the center of my forehead. 

Rose sobbed, shaking her head. “I....”

I looked to her, my lips parted just enough for my new fangs to feel comfortable in my mouth. “The war?” I asked. 

“We won the battle,” Garnet said, voice as gentle as it got. “However, the Diamonds’ troops are still on the move. We have lost many good men and women.” Firmly, she looked away from me to Rose. “Their forces could attack at any moment.” 

As carefully as I could, I stood up. I realized I had been sleeping in a cobbled-together coffin, probably to protect me during the day from the sun. It was night now--I could smell fire on the wind and food, but it was not appealing. There was also the lingering smell of dried blood. That made my mouth water, but I ignored the new feeling. 

On shaky legs, I moved to Rose. She was still sobbing, staring at me without actually looking at me. I took her larger hand in my thin one, and kissed it. “Thank you,” I whispered. “For saving me once more.” She reached out, scooping me up and holding me tightly to her bosom. I let her do whatever she felt she needed to. Then, gently, I pushed away from her. “There is still much to do.”

Rose nodded a little. “Do you hate me now?” She asked. “My Pearl…”

I smiled weakly at her, feeling my fangs press into my bottom lip. “How could I hate someone as caring and as beautiful as you? You have saved me, twice. I live for you, Rose. I have died for you. Whatever I am does not matter. What matters is keeping you safe. All of these years of training have been for you. Do you understand? I serve you, not because you own me, but out of love.” 

“You are taking this remarkably well,” Garnet commented. 

I sighed a little, brushing the smooth lump on my forehead with my fingertips. I assumed it was the pearl Ruby had given me for protection, oh so long ago. It was only fitting that it had aided in saving my existence. I looked to my friend, nodding a little. “In a way, I think I have always known that this would happen to me.” 

Garnet looked to the ground, her lips parted but her voice silent. Rose, behind me, put a hand firmly on my shoulder. I touched her fingers with my own. The three of us stood in the tent, listening as wolves howled in the distance. I licked my lips a little. No. Not the distance. The wolves were growing closer. 

“Werewolves,” Garnet said grimly. “We already fought them off on the night of the full moon. Many of our men and women were killed. I see…” She went silent for a moment, all eyes but her third closed. “They will attack tonight, at midnight. Pack after pack has joined; their numbers swell.” Her other eyes snapped open. “This will not be an easy fight.” 

“Prepare those who are still able to fight,” Rose ordered. She looked down at me. “Pearl, you are still fresh from the grave. I do not want you fighting tonight. You need to rest still.” 

“No! I will fight.” There was a snarl in my voice that I had not meant to put there. I blinked a few times at myself, then touched my fangs again. They were very sharp and longer than I had expected. Rose’s were so dainty that they did not hang over her bottom lip. Feeling mine, however, revealed that I was not the same. Perhaps it was because my lips were so thin while hers were plump and lovely? Shaking my head of the thoughts, I looked to Rose. “Where is my sword? Where is my spear?”

The howling intensified outside. A shiver raced up and down my spine. Rose looked to the flap of the tent, waiting for a moment as footsteps rushed toward us. One of the warriors appeared, saluting. She gasped a little, then reported. “Madame, the wolves are on the move, surrounding the camp. By midnight, there will be no escape if we do not act now!”

Rose bowed her head. “Very well. Garnet, I need you to lead a troop. You have seen where the wolves are coming from. I need you to cut them off before their numbers swell too much. I hope there will not be as much bloodshed as there was yesterday…” 

Garnet nodded. “Pearl. Come with me.” She moved toward the opened flap of the tent. 

I gasped a little, fingers still laced with Rose’s. I looked to her, hoping that she would say yes to Garnet’s proposal. Before either of us could say a word, Garnet continued to speak. “She will need blood. There is no better place for her to drink than from the neck of a fallen soldier, werewolf or not.” 

At the mention of blood, my mouth watered again. I could smell it on the air, though it was an old scent. I licked my lips, pleading with my eyes to Rose to allow me to go with Garnet. I watched her, thinking upon it, then sigh and nod. 

Carefully, she let go of my shoulder and moved to a corner of the tent. There, her armor sat, glimmering from being freshly shined. She bent double, retrieving something from the chest beside it. “Do not wear your armor, Pearl. You will need all of your stealth. Take this. Your own weapons were destroyed when you were slain.” When she stood back up, she was holding her own sword. I gasped, but she looked at me firmly. “It is heavy, but it will serve you well in this battle.”

My fingers danced across the hilt of the sword, my breath caught in my throat. Tenderly, I took it from her hands, testing the weight. “Thank you,” I whispered. Then, more gently, “I love you.” 

With one finger, she lifted my face up to look at her. I peered into her black eyes and saw all of the sorrows of the world. “I love you, my Pearl,” she breathed. We kissed.

***

The terrain was rocky. There was a forest of trees that grew upon the rocks, their exposed roots reaching down, down, down until they found purchase in the earth. There was no sky; only a canopy of leaves that swallowed up the moon, the stars, the darkness of night. It was still and silent in that forest; no animal moved, no bird sang. 

I hunkered down behind a rock, my hand resting on Rose Quartz’s sword. Garnet was beside me, looking. We lead a group of women and men who were ready to die if need be. Some were monsters, like us; some were humans, like I had once been. All of us believed in Rose, in the peace she was fighting for. 

Ahead was a well-worn path. There were footprints in the mud of it, both human-like and wolf-like. The stench of dog filled my nose until I yearned to gag. This was the den of the werewolf pack that had grown in size. These were our enemies. 

That was what I thought, until the first werewolf stepped into view. 

She was short, even for a woman, with long, lilac hair. Her wolf-like ears twitched, listening, and her nose sniffed at the air. My mouth hung open, my lips mouthing her name. “Amethyst,” I breathed, tasting her on my tongue like expensive chocolate. My mind became filled with thoughts of her, of her taste, of her love, of her kiss. My unbeating heart ached from the loss of her, from losing her. 

Beside me, Garnet motioned quickly with one of her hands. Two men followed the silent orders, readying bows loaded with silver-tipped arrows. “No!” I struggled to shout; my voice could not be found. 

Before the men could shoot, before Amethyst sniffed us out and called for her pack, I stood. Garnet hissed at me to get down, but I stayed my ground. “Amethyst!” 

The werewolf turned, surprise in her eyes. Her mouth hung open; I saw a flash of deadly sharp teeth. Embedded in her chest was a purple stone that had not been there before. She did not shout for her alpha; she did not make a sound. Instead, she stared at me, eyes moving down my slender body and then looking at the pearl in my forehead. She blinked stupidly; I moved toward her. “Amethyst,” I said again, barely a word on my tongue. 

“You’re alive,” she said, finally. Tears were starting to well up in her eyes. “Holy shit, you’re alive.” 

We embraced, ignoring everything else for a moment. For that instant, that fraction of a second, I was a nameless slave girl again, finding love for the first time. I was warm and happy and ready to live for the first time in my life. 

It was a fleeting moment. 

Amethyst quickly pushed me back, looking over her shoulder. “You have to go, girl,” she hissed through clenched teeth. “If they find you, they’ll kill you!” 

“I am already dead,” I whispered back.

She put her hands on her hips and shook her head. “You don’t understand. I’m a scout. I’m a werewolf. Shit. Where did you come from? How are you here?” 

“We don’t have time to talk,” I whispered, looking up at the outcropping of rocks behind her. “Come with me.” 

Amethyst’s lips parted. “I...can’t. My pack needs me!” She pushed me again. “Go back. You’re on the other side, aren’t you? I mean...you’re fighting for the bad guys!” 

Garnet stood up from her spot, motioning to the men to stand still. “Pearl!” She snapped, catching my attention. I looked to her as Amethyst pushed me again. “Get over here! Now!” 

“Pearl?” Amethyst asked, her face a mixture of confusion and anger. I longed to hold her, to forget the war, but I knew things between us could never been the same again. I was in love with Rose. I was now a vampire, fighting on behalf of humanity. Amethyst was a werewolf, fighting to serve the Diamonds. With a snarl, the smaller woman pushed at me once more. “Leave! Get out of here before I have to hurt you!” 

My hands shaking, I grabbed at Amethyst. I put one hand over her mouth, my other arm wrapped around her waist. I pulled at her, dragging her back with me behind the rocks Garnet and the men were hiding behind. Amethyst struggled; I could feel her hitting me with her tail. I was flabbergasted for a moment that she even had a tail to begin with, but instead of allowing that emotion to swell up over me I hit her as hard as I could on the head with the butt-end of Rose’s sword. 

Amethyst went limp in my arms. I hugged her tightly, smelling the blood as it dripped from her head. Apparently, I had hit her too hard. I sighed a little, lapping it up with my tongue. The taste was akin to a fine wine, but with fire attached to it. I loved it, and drank more until Garnet made me stop. 

“Take her back to Rose Quartz,” Garnet ordered. “They’ll smell her blood if you keep her here.” 

Nodding, I gathered Amethyst up in my arms, and fled back to the campsite.


	10. A Clash Of Hearts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Amethyst must decide where her heart belongs while Pearl remembers the past and looks to the future.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Sorry for the slow updates.

Amethyst awoke with a growl and a snort, curled up like a wolf pup in my arms. I had just started to nod off myself, the new, vampiric aspects of my being having felt the sun start to rise. I looked down at the mass of lavender hair in my lap. Slowly, slowly, Amethyst lifted her head to look at me. She snarled. 

“Why did you hit me!?” She growled, quickly escaping my arms to take footing on the floor of the tent. Amethyst backed up until she hit the coffin that had been hastily constructed for me to use. She turned, eyeing the pine box, then looked at me again. I could feel her eyes burrowing into the pearl set into my forehead. “They changed you.” 

“You’ve changed, too,” I said, perhaps with more sadness in my voice than I had meant to allow. Slowly, I stood up to my full height. I was used to Garnet and Rose Quartz, both being taller than myself. Amethyst was much shorter, so I almost towered over her. It was an odd feeling. To fix it, I knelt down before her. We looked into each other's eyes. Carefully, like a mother touching her newborn for the first time, I reached out my hand to stroke her cheek. 

Almost instantly, Amethyst pulled back with a barking snarl. “Don’t touch me!” She snapped, fingers clawing at me. “You’re on their side now, aren’t you? You’re fighting alongside Rose Quartz! Don’t you understand? She wants to destroy everything we are!” 

“That’s not true!” This time, it was my turn to snarl. My lips lifted over my teeth and I bared my fangs at her. “She is fighting for humanity! She is fighting because the Diamond Court is evil, and ready to destroy anything they cannot control!” 

“Fighting for humanity?” Amethyst laughed. “You’re not a human anymore!” 

As though struck by her words, I pulled back. I could feel my slim hands shaking as I looked down at the deathly pale skin covering them. Squeezing my eyes shut did not help; I could still feel the throbbing of the pearl in my forehead and the lack of a heartbeat in my chest. “I was once,” I whispered. “As were you.” I looked at her then, taking her in. 

We had both changed, but perhaps her changes were more visible. Her ears had shifted, becoming those of a wolf. They swiveled now, facing away from me as though listening to something else. Her hair--beautiful, unnatural lavender--had grown down her back, sweeping the floor when she moved. Those fingers that had once tenderly touched me were adorned with terrible, black claws. When her lips parted--those lovely, plush lips that I could have kissed for an eternity--there were nothing but sharp, deadly teeth inside of her mouth. 

Tears sprang to my eyes. I pushed my palms into my face, trying to hide my emotions from the woman I had once loved so passionately. Now she hated me, hated what I had become. We were nothing anymore--just leaves on the wind, pulled away from the same tree by fate. Now that we had landed upon the ground, we were changed. We were different. 

No longer were we slaves finding salvation in each other. Now, we were monsters, fighting on opposite sides of a war that was bound to tear the world apart. 

Amethyst spoke, her words pulling me from my dazed thinking. “She--er. That woman. She called you Pearl. Is that--” 

“That was the name that Rose Quartz gave me,” I said, slowly, gently. “I have worn it with pride. I will always.” 

The werewolf nodded a little, looking around the tent. Everywhere but at me. She parted her lips to speak again. “You sound like you’re pretty faithful to her.”

“I owe her everything. My life--twice. She saved me from the slavers and gave me freedom. Then, in this war...I have fought for her. She brought me back from the grave.” My hands moved as though on their own, touching the pearl at the center of my forehead. “I have lived with her, all of these years. She has helped me immensely. I love--” I stopped, fearing I would damage Amethyst’s heart. 

“You love her,” she finished for me. There was no hate in her voice. Just the hollow ring of truth. She sat down, legs crossed and fingers digging into the packed earth of the tent floor. “Where is she now?”

“I don’t know. I brought you back here after what happened--”

Suddenly, Amethyst’s eyes widened. She sprang again to her feet, mouth opening and closing like a fish. Then she spat out what she was thinking-- “My pack! You were going to attack--”

I lowered my head. “Garnet and her battalion have not arrived back to camp. I do not know the outcome of the skirmish, but considering how well versed those troops are, I highly doubt your pack survived.” I realized too late that my words were cold hearted. I looked up at her, watching large tears start to fall from her eyes. I stood up, going to her, and held her close as she sobbed. “I’m sorry, Amethyst.” 

“Why did you save me?” There was so much pain in her voice that my heart--unbeating--hurt. I swallowed hard, holding her still to my chest as she wept. 

“Because I once loved you,” I whispered to her. “Because part of me still does.”

Amethyst pushed me away. “You! You’ve...you’ve taken everything from me! My pack is my family. Sure, I might not have been the best fighter or the alpha, but...but...they...They all loved me! We all loved each other!” 

My arms fell to my sides. “I’m...I’m truly sorry, Amethyst.” It was all I could say. All I could bare to say. I wished to hold her longer, but she would not allow me. Every time I attempted to touch her, she would snap or snarl or growl at me, pushing me further and further away. 

Shaking, Amethyst turned away from me. “So what now,” she snapped. “Am I your prisoner?” 

“Never,” I gasped. How could she think so poorly of me? Had she forgotten our love for each other? Had she forgotten our time together, hoping and praying for a better life? I, again, pushed the palms of my hands into my eyes, squeezing as though attempting to pop out an idea from my brain. “I will not chain you up or hold you back, Amethyst. I love you. I do. Things are simply...different now.” 

There was movement from outside of the tent. Amethyst sprang back, on the defensive, and glared at the tent flap as it opened. Rose stepped inside, blood covering her clothing and part of her face. She had her sword in one hand and her shield strapped to the other arm. Yet there was a kind smile upon her face. Amethyst snarled at her, yipping a bit like a frightened dog, and she retreated to the back of the tent. 

“Pearl, you are back,” Rose said to me. She looked at Amethyst. “With a guest, no less.” 

I stood up, nodding. “This is Amethyst,” I said, voice hollow. “I have told you about her before.” 

Rose’s face lit up. “Oh! Amethyst.” She smiled a little, dropping her weapons. “Pearl has told me so much about you. Especially when she first came to live with me. She was rather smitten with you, you know.” 

Amethyst did not reply. She turned her head away, holding her arms across her chest, and simply stared at the floor. 

“You are welcome to stay as long as you would like to,” Rose said gently. She did not approach the werewolf, but rather got on her knees and held out a hand. “Amethyst,” she said, her voice gentle like a morning breeze. “Your pack would like to make sure you are okay.”

At this, Amethyst blinked rather stupidly at Rose. “Whaddya mean? Your...your troops didn’t kill them?”

Rose sighed a little. She pulled her hand back, placing it on the ground as she spoke. “There are no good wars,” she said gently. “People--good people and bad people--die. A few members of your pack attacked Garnet and the troops she led. They had to be put down. Others, seeing that they were going to be slaughtered, surrendered. I have spoken with them. The children are safe, as well as your alphas.”

Amethyst blinked. “What about--”

“Come with me. They are receiving medical attention at the moment.” 

I watched as Amethyst crawled forward a little, finally getting off of her knees and standing. As though waiting for a trap, she followed after Rose. She did not look at me. I bowed my head again as she left.

The sun was going to rise soon. I needed sleep. Sluggishly, I pulled myself into my coffin, closed the lid, and slipped off into the ocean of dreams awaiting me. 

***

I pushed against the lid of my coffin, but it would not budge. Terror slowly started to build up in me as I attempted again. There was some sort of weight holding the lid down, trapping me inside. I screamed, the thought that I had been buried while slumbering striking me hard. 

The something that was holding me in that pine box yawned. Slowly, it moved, slipping off of the top of the coffin until I was able to push it open. I blinked at the lantern light in the tent, then looked around as I sat up. Amethyst was on the floor beside my place of sleep, still half asleep herself. She peered up at me, her wolf ears swiveling atop her head. “G’morning,” she mumbled. “Or evening, I guess.” 

“You were asleep on my coffin?” I asked, blinking at her. She smiled lazily back at me. Carefully, I touched her soft ears. “Why?” 

“Someone has to protect you when you’re out, right?”

My lips parted though no words came out. I felt my unbeating heart melt. “Amethyst?” I whispered, getting out of the coffin. I licked my lips and decided to lie beside her, holding her to my body. She was so warm, so alive, that I was taken back for a moment. I wrapped my arms around her, feeling the beating of her heart against my chest. 

Amethyst laughed a little. “Everything’s okay. Rose showed me. Most of my pack is safe. Some...some died, yeah.” There was sorrow in her voice, but she quickly masked it. “My alphas are safe. They decided they’re going to fight for Rose. So I guess I gotta, too.” 

“Why did they switch sides?” I asked softly, brushing my fingers through her hair. 

Shrugging, Amethyst yawned again. “Rose has that certain...feeling about her, right? Like she’s going to make everything better. Fix things. The Diamonds sorta bullied their way in, tryin’ to make us fight for them out of necessity. Rose gave my pack a choice. And they were both good choices. Either fight for her, and she’ll expand our territory to where that coven was that got destroyed, or be free from the war all together. But...that’s prime huntin’ out that way. One of our trackers went to look. We wouldn’t have to wait for the full moon to hunt. We could take down deer and raise some goats or cattle there. Perfect land for it.” 

I smiled at her, kissing the top of her head. “So what are you going to do?”

“Well,” Amethyst said, running her tongue over her teeth, “someone told me that you like to throw yourself into danger to protect Rose. So I sorta decided someone needs to protect you from yourself.” She grinned up at me, touching the tip of my nose with one finger. “Even if you’re a vampire now… Someone’s still gotta make sure you don’t get yourself cut up for being stupid.” 

Laughing, I kissed her, feeling as though everything was right with the world again. She returned the kiss, gently, and I moaned softly at the touch of her warmth against my cold. When we pulled back from each other, we looked into each other’s eyes for a long, long time. 

Then Amethyst bit her lip. “You love Rose, though,” she said softly. “And she loves you. She made that very clear while we were talkin’.” 

I closed my eyes, feeling as though I was about to leap into an abyss I could not turn away from. “I can and will love both of you,” I said gently.

Amethyst grinned and licked me. I blinked stupidly at her, quickly wiping the slime of her tongue off of my face. “Great,” she said, laughing. “Because I’m glad to have you back.”

Eventually, we untangled ourselves from each other. Amethyst had to go check with her pack, while I sought out Rose Quartz. We had won a lot of ground from the Diamonds, and it seemed that their forces were retreating. It was possible that the war was almost over, that we had almost won. Still, there was an unease around the camp. 

“Pearl,” a monotone voice called out to me. I turned, finding Garnet waiting for me outside of another tent. Some of her men and women were around her, fixing weapons or armor. She approached me, and touched the side of my face with one of her hands. 

“Did you know?” I asked quietly. “Did you know I would find Amethyst?”

Garnet sighed, dropping her hand to her side. “There are many branching paths that the future can and will take. I did see that you might be reunited with her. I also saw death, and love.” She shook her head a little. “I decided to bring you because it could sway the future in a way that would aid us in the war.” 

I nodded a little. “We have more troops now. Werewolves--an entire pack that will fight for us.”

“And you have found the woman you love.” 

“One of them,” I replied, gently. “I still love Rose, and I always will. Amethyst...was my first love. I still hold that love inside of me. It warms me, no matter how bitter the nights are.” 

Garnet offered one of her cautious, rare smiles. I licked my lips, then took her hand in mine, feeling the gemstone embedded in her palm. “Many things have changed. I have changed, too. I know I will continue to grow, to learn, to fight.”

She moved a little, touching me with her other hand. “I see many things for your future,” she said gently--at least, as gently as she could. I let out a breath I did not know I was holding. “Some good. Some bad. But always love.” 

“Thank you,” I said, and let go of her hand. We parted ways after that, her to tend to her men and women and I to find Rose Quartz. 

Eventually, my wanderings led me to the medical tent. There were a few healers that had joined us at the beginning of the war--some human, some monsters--but the most powerful of them all was still Rose Quartz. Her very tears could mend broken bone and torn skin almost instantly. She sat among a small group of werewolf children, smiling brightly at them as they wagged their little tails. 

“Rose,” I whispered. I hated having to break up the little meeting, but I needed to speak with her. She looked up at me, then back at the pups. 

“I apologize, little ones. I need to go now. Remember to take care of your parents.” She laughed a little, a ray of sunshine on the dark fields of war. Then she gathered herself, and stepped out of the circle of children. They groaned with sadness, but retreated into one of the nearby tents. Rose looked down at me, the same smile still upon her lips. Gently, she kissed me. 

“I’m sorry,” I said, watching the last of the pups. She was tugging on the tent flap and looking at us with wide, yellow eyes. I smiled at her, then shooed her in with her brothers, sisters, and parents, who were snoozing away. 

Rose watched the pup with love in her eyes. “I want a child,” she said, more to herself than to me. “A beautiful, lovely child with all of the hope in the world.” 

My lips parted a little. “I cannot give you one,” I said, my voice defeated. 

“Hm? Oh, no. It’s just...a pipe dream,” Rose said softly. She put her hands on her stomach, thumbs touching the edges of her gem. “Even when I was human, I longed for a baby of my own. I know I will never have one. Besides...It...it’s hard for vampires. Werewolves are lucky. They are not of the undead. They are simply immortal. They can have children whenever they wish. Us? Vampires? We have to give up our immortality to become human again--and it is a very painful process. Most die before or during birth.” There was pain on her face as she spoke. 

“Rose…” I said, trying to bring her attention to me instead of what she could never have. I put my hand on her arm. She looked at me, eyes misty. “I love you,” I offered, knowing that it was the only thing I could say to her. 

She smiled weakly at me. “Thank you, Pearl. I love you as well. You’re always there for me when I need you most.” 

I took heart in her words, thankful for them. I needed her more than she knew, and perhaps, she needed me as well.


	11. The Treaty

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The war draws to a close, and our story meets it's midway point.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I apologize for the lack of updates as of late. There have been some family issues I have had to attend to. I should be able to update regularly from now until the story's end.

Amethyst awoke to the sounds of horse hooves in the dawn of early morning three days after she and her pack had come to camp. Though she spent many hours of her time with her pack, with her family, she spent the days sleeping between my coffin and the coffin Rose used. This morning, however, she was firmly asleep on top of mine until the clatter of hooves drove her from her sleep. 

Growling out a warning, she stood up and raced to the ten flap, peering out about camp to see who was on the horse. All of the horses in Rose’s army were at the other side of camp, protected by some members of the small woman’s clan. These footfalls came from the direction of the enemy’s position. 

As though summoned by the horses, Garnet and a few of her men and women appeared as well, all gathering at the outskirts of camp to greet or kill whomever decided to come toward them. Amethyst’s whip was ready and willing to break skin and bring blood should she need to. “Who is it?” she snarled, teeth bared and claws shimmering darkly in the morning light. 

“A messenger from the Diamond Court,” Garnet said, having either foreseen this or having guessed very well. Her gauntlets appeared on her hands, her eyes squinting coldly against the sun as the horses drew closer. One, two, three...Three riders drew closer and closer, their shadows blots against the grown. “Two guards,” she mumbled. “Amethyst, at the ready in case this is a trap.” 

“Whoa, I mean, you can tell if it is or not, can’t you?” Amethyst barked. She felt the hair on the back of her neck stand at attention, her entire body bristling with the will and energy to attack. To kill. “Shouldn’t we...grrrr...attack them now before they can get into camp?”

“No. I can see two possible outcomes from this, and in one, the riders do not leave so easily.” 

“And the second?”

Garnet pursed her lips together, not willing to give up that information yet. She bowed her head, those under her command ready with spears, swords, and shields. Her voice boomed out across the plains separating Rose Quartz’s army from the riders still. “This is a warning. Come in peace or leave in death.”

 

The riders paused for a moment, seemingly speaking amongst themselves before the messenger alone rode forward. She was a young thing, probably a magic user, and had no visible weaponry on her body. As her horse approached, she skidded it to a slow meandering walk. Then, again, she dismounted, and lead the horse toward Garnet, Amethyst, and the others. “We do not mean any harm,” the young woman said. She stood a solid foot taller than Amethyst, but was still much shorter than Garnet. She posed no threat; both of the warriors could see that. 

“Why have you and your guards come?” Garnet pushed, her voice low now. Soothing, almost. 

The messenger bowed her head in respect. Then, calmly, she pulled an envelope from her satchel. “This letter is for Rose Quartz and no one else.”

Garnet nodded, taking the letter into her armored hands. She carefully passed it to one of her men, who pocketed it before taking up his sword again. The stitched-together woman turned back to the messenger. “You have completed your mission. What else do you have to say?” 

“Nothing,” the young woman offered, turning to look between Garnet and Amethyst. Her eyes were narrowed, a slight glint behind them as though she wished to say more but dared not to. “By the time your leader reads the letter, we will be gone.” She bowed her head, dipping her body gracefully to follow, then turned her back on them to mount her horse once more. “In the name of my Diamond,” she finished, and rode off toward her guards. 

Amethyst watched them long after they had disappeared beyond the horizon, a sickly feeling in her stomach that she could not justify. 

***

When evening came, the sounds of merriment awoke me from my slumber. I blinked a few times, rubbing at my eyes. From the small cracks in my coffin, I could see bright, festive light. Carefully, I pushed my lid open, half expecting to feel Amethyst’s weight push back against me. She was not there, however. 

I stood, dusting myself off. I was alone in my tent, but three lanterns had been lit and hung as though to greet me. I blinked at them stupidly for a few moments before gathering my under clothing to change. My armor was next, and I fumbled with it for some time before managing to put it on my slender body. It felt heavier than usual, but I waved it away as my tired mind getting the better of me. 

Once my sword was belted into place, I left the tent to find the werewolf pups running around, free and happy. “What are you doing? Aren’t you supposed to be with your mother?” I asked them. They were children--young and weak. Too weak to be unsupervised. Should battle break out...should an assassin come into camp…

The little runt wolf looked up at me, her eyes all a glimmer with happiness and play. “The war is over, Miss Pearl! The war is over! A lady came and gave Rose a note!” One of her older brothers pounced on her then, dragging her away to play with the others. 

Mouth agape, I looked around the camp. Men and women were drinking happily from goblets and wineskins. Some were kissing. None had armor on or weapons in hand. There was a golden light everywhere I looked. Baffled, I took two steps forward and was quickly toppled by someone from behind. Amethyst licked the side of my face. I could smell alcohol on her breath, but said nothing of it. 

“Is it true?” I asked her, stealing a kiss while I could as she pounced off of me. “Have the Diamonds given in?” 

“Yep!” Amethyst barked happily, rolling around on the barren ground. “I saw it myself! Well, me and Garnet did. One of their messengers came with a letter of surrender for Rose! It was all official and signed. They’re supposed to come and officially lay down their weapons tomorrow night!” Giddy with the news, she kissed me back, then rushed off to be with her pack. 

In that instant, I knew I had to find Rose. I had to be with her, to celebrate, to kiss her and hold her and bask in the warmth of the firelight with her. We could finally return to her castle, to the gardens where I had been trained to kill, to fight. There would be no need for that any longer. Just love...just us. Squeezing my eyes shut, I sniffed the wind, tasted her scent. There. 

Like a fleet-footed cat, I waltzed my way to Rose. She was sitting on a rock overlooking a small river bed that had long since dried up. No one was around her, not even the little used guards Garnet had supplied her with at the beginning of the war. Upon her lap was an envelope, the red wax seal broken, and in her hands was a page of paper embossed with gold ink. The wind blew gracefully through her curls, a gust throwing them over her wide shoulders. She looked like a painting, an idol--something otherworldly and perfect. 

Oh, how I longed to kiss her then, to throw my arms around her and hold her to my chest. I yearned to sink my teeth into her lovely neck, to let my lips linger upon her throat. I throbbed for her, needed her. Sighing deeply, I swallowed back my lust and approached her. 

“My Pearl,” Rose said, looking up at me. I stopped short of touching her, my hand already raised to stroke her cheek. There was a small smile upon her luscious lips. Carefully, she took my hand in hers, bringing it across the space between us. One by one, she kissed each of my fingers. I looked upon her, my love, my true Queen, and sighed. I fell into her arms. 

That night, upon that rock, with the moon and stars looking down upon us, we made love. 

***

The Diamond Queens arrived the following night to lay down their weapons, as promised. Rose and Garnet, along with some of our best warriors (myself included) met them on middle ground. Though I was there, I was not allowed among the front lines, just in case things went wrong. I argued with Rose’s choice to keep me safe over herself, but there was nothing I could do to rebel. I simply had to trust in Garnet and the others to care for her while I kept the rest of the army calm. 

At midnight, while the moon was high in the black sky, Rose Quartz returned to camp, the rest of us following her bare feet to the trodden soil. She held up the swords of the Diamond Queens, all four of them, though the sword of the Pink Diamond Queen had been broken in two. She had been lost in one of the battles while I was slumbering, somewhere between being human and becoming a vampire. 

“The war is over!” Rose Quartz said at the top of her lungs, lowering the swords to the ground. “The Diamond Court has declared it to be so. They will take their followers across the sea, to uncharted lands. They will not return. We have won!” 

Those around her cheered. Everyone hailed her as a hero, our warrior Queen. I bowed my head, tears falling from my blue eyes, and held my hand to my chest. Amethyst, at my hip, laughed and hugged me tightly. Garnet put her hand on my shoulder, a slight smile on her lips. 

We had won.


	12. What Garnet Saw

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Garnet peers into the future to discover Rose Quartz's fate.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Thank you to everyone who has left a comment! I am very glad to be back and writing again. For those wondering, everything is fine in my family. My grandfather, whom I live with, had to go into surgery for his hip (which was broken last year), and we also had some other, smaller issues to work out. I will be uploading smaller chapters more frequently now, at least one a day (sometimes two if I am able) until the end of the fiction.

Garnet’s lips parted as she closed all three of her eyes. She did not sway; she was as still as a statue. Standing in Rose’s garden, she could feel the presence of a great beast--a lion--but that did not frighten her. Instead, she pushed her hands out into the open air, feeling for a fluffy mane. The large cat rubbed up against her thighs for a moment before pouncing off into the night. Still, the stitched-together woman stood, feeling for the future, the ebb and flow of time. 

First, always first, came the smell. The sweet, sweet smell of the same garden she stood in. The scent of the roses after a fresh spring shower greeted her as she walked through the present and into the future’s waters. There were many little offshoots, all pointing in different paths. Garnet watched each of them unfold inside of her. Next came the noise--birds chirping softly in the trees, the cry of a child just being born. 

Ah, yes. 

Garnet moved in that direction, tugging on the silver string that lead her toward an uncertain future. Though it felt a little dim, a little far fetched, it was still as solid as the other paths. As solid as something that had not yet been could be. 

The silver thread brought her to the side of Rose Quartz, stomach swollen and heavy with child. A man walked with her through the garden, holding her hand and smiling sweetly with youth up at her. The sun warmed them both--Rose for the first time in centuries. They chatted softly about something Garnet could not make out. She tipped her head, trying to listen, to hear, but she could only make out one sentence.

“...We will name him Steven, if he is a boy.” 

The future snapped. Garnet’s eyes opened, greeted with darkness once more. She allowed her hands to fall back to her sides, and released a breath she had not known she was holding. It was just one chance, one direction, one future of many. But it was there. Just as shimmering and lively as any other. 

***

“Garnet?” I asked, looking at her as I exited the castle. The war had been won, and we had escaped back to Rose’s castle weeks prior, after the army had disbanded. Amethyst’s pack had successfully moved into the area the coven had once thrived in, Garnet staying close to them as a guest and a mentor. Now she had appeared in the castle’s gardens, a statue of beauty, grace, and danger. I gently touched the side of her face, looking up into her eyes. 

She stared back at me for a moment before her plush lips moved to speak. 

“Where is Rose?” she asked, shivering a little under my touch. Something was wrong. I could see it upon her, like an aura. I wanted to push, to ask, but she moved passed me and to the entrance. “I must speak with her.” 

“I believe she is in the library,” I offered softly, lowering my hand. “Garnet? Is there something I should know?”

The woman was silent for a moment before she disappeared into the castle. 

***

In her vision, Rose was human again. What could it mean? Rose would give up her immortality for a human male, for a chance at a family she would never live to see. No. Most vampires who gave up their immortality died upon giving birth, passing on what little was left inside of a soul to their child. It was a known outcome. So why would Rose…?

Baffled by this future, Garnet paused outside of the library. She could hear Rose Quartz humming to herself inside, just passed the door. Raising her hand to knock, Garnet felt fear and panic rush through her. Rose had lead an army against the Diamond Court. She was a Queen now, herself, in a way--a loving ruler to all of those who had followed her into battle. Why would she give that up? Why would she settle down with a human male, a man of unknown origin, and have a child with him if it meant giving up her own life?

Swallowing hard, Garnet looked down at the palms of her hands. From deep within, she knew the answer. Love. Love had everything to do with it. Ruby had given up everything to allow Sapphire to live, in a way, as a part of Garnet. Both of them were inside of her now, together forever, bound together by magic and love. 

Her head still bowed, Garnet nodded. If that future was the one Rose would follow, then there was nothing she could do to stop it--and nothing she would want to do. Rose deserved love--she deserved the world, as far as Garnet was concerned. 

Without telling Rose of the future, without warning her of her fate, Garnet turned and left the castle again, fleeing into the night.


	13. Greg

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pearl has to deal with the changes of becoming a vampire, and the beginning of everything appears.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Second chapter for the day. I hope you all don't mind me uploading multiple chapters a day while I can. :) I hope you all enjoy this!

Humans came to the castle by the cartload, offering up their wrists and throats for our hungry fangs. Rose often looked paler than usual every time this happened; she would sway a little out of hunger, lick her lips and stare at the exposed veins. Never, however, would she indulge. Instead, she sent the humans away with fruit from her garden when it was in season; otherwise, she would offer up silver and gold coins, as we had little need of them. The humans who were saved by the war wanted to worship her as a goddess, as a queen; she would not allow them to do so. 

So they came running to me. 

Startled at first, I allowed my fresh hunger to get the better of me. I hated to admit it, but there were a few humans that I drank from in those first, fledgling years. I did not kill anyone; that was beyond me to do so to those we had fought the war for. As time went on, however, I grew to dislike the taste of blood, the feeling of hearts slowing as I played a deadly game. 

By my third year of being a vampire, I, like Rose, gave up blood all together and lived off of the power of my pearl. The hunger rose in me every so often, of course; I sated it by licking and nursing a little off of Rose or Amethyst, but otherwise, I detested the taste of the crimson liquid. 

Then there was the sex.

Rose had warned me when we returned home that my hormones would be crazy for the first decade or so. She had no explanation for why freshly turned vampires desired sex more than they craved blood. Perhaps it was the last bit of humanity in me rebelling against what I had become. Neither of us knew, but I often found myself nude before either Rose or Amethyst, or sometimes both at once. I needed them. I needed them so badly that sometimes, when I was alone, it hurt. 

My lust, just like my urge to drink hot blood, slowly disappeared. Eventually I was able to keep my head again, and things proceeded as though there had never been a war--save for the aforementioned barrage of human activity at our door. For the most part, I allowed Rose to handle them once I had passed my stage of hunger. Sometimes, however, I would entertain them with gold coins and tales of battles now considered history. 

The years passed by in a blur. We were happy, Rose and I, to live together in that castle in the forest. When Garnet or Amethyst came by to visit, we all felt more whole, more together and alive than before. It was a nice time; a good time. 

But all good things must come to an end. 

One day, when the stories of the war had been passed down from generation to generation and the loads of humans no longer came to our door, a travelling bard, lost in the forest, came to us. He was a young thing, perhaps in his twenties or so, and knew nothing of the war we had fought, other than the songs he had learned from his village. 

It was early in the morning. Only Amethyst, who had decided to sleep atop my coffin, was aware of his presence. She sniffed the air, moving from the crypt up, up, up to the main floor of the castle. The scent of human was in the air. Worry, fear. And song! Oh, yes. There was a song upon this man’s lips, in his heart, in his soul. She followed this to the gardens, watching from the shadows as the man took a seat upon one of the stone benches nestled in beside the roses. 

Slowly, he looked around, and started to sing. 

Amethyst paused, listening. Her ears perked up at the noise. “Oh man,” she breathed, listening longer. “Rose is gonna love this guy’s voice.” 

Oh, how little did she know. This man was the beginning of everything, of the end. 

Had I known…

If only I had known.

***

Greg walked along the garden paths, looking this way and that. There were flowers that looked lovely, but most of them were plants that he could not name. Sure, there were the roses he knew well--but even they came in colors that he had never seen before. Here and there were trees, tall and blooming with sweet smelling buds. 

There was a song upon his lips, but it was just an idle tune as he meandered through the maze of flowers, shrubs, and trees. This was the place of fairy tales, of his songs, of the stories he had listened to while a child upon his father’s lap. 

Yet, he knew in the back of his mind, that this was a dangerous place. 

There had been talk of werewolves roaming around in the forest. This forest, specifically. However, he was a travelling performer, and needed to move to a new location to make coin enough to live. Not that he was well known; very much the opposite, actually. Very few knew his name, and often, he ended up doing more odd jobs in the villages and towns he visited rather than sing. 

With a deep sigh, he paused, looking upon a stone bench that had been carved to look like two roses, intertwined, their leaves acting as the seats. He tipped his head to the side, letting his long, brown hair fall across his shoulder. Greg continued to sing to himself, sitting down and looking around some more. 

Eventually, he fell asleep, curled up on the bench. 

***

Amethyst sniffed the air, watching as the human fell asleep. Only then did she leave the shadows to inspect him. “Heheh,” she laughed to herself. “I like your hair, human.” He had left his pack on his back, but she was able to look through it by being very careful. It did help that the human in question seemed to be a very heavy sleeper. “Let’s see...oooh! Jerky!” The werewolf quickly gobbled down the food--all of the food she found inside--then closed up the pack again. “Hmm.”   
“You shouldn’t have done that,” a familiar voice said from down the path. Amethyst froze, then laughed as Garnet came into view. 

“You startled me!” Amethyst barked out a laugh, looking down at the human. She trotted over to Garnet, looking up at her and blinking. She sniffed at her. “You haven’t been around the pack lately. What’s up?”

Garnet put one hand on top of Amethyst’s head. “I have been gone for my own reasons.” That was that; she did not offer anything else by way of explanation. She walked over to the human, still slumbering, and put one hand on his head. He did not stir. “This man is named Gregory Universe, though he prefers Greg.”

“What a weird name.”

The stitched-together woman said nothing else, taking her hand back from Greg’s head. Then she turned, looking at Amethyst. “When Rose and Pearl awaken, make sure he is brought inside and cared for.” 

“Uh, where are you going? You show up and then leave?”

“I have my reasons,” Garnet said. 

Amethyst shook her head and picked at her nose. “You’re terrible,” she laughed. “I guess we’ve all got our secrets.” 

“Hmm,” Garnet mumbled, then brushed by Amethyst. “Oh, and one more thing. No matter what, make sure Pearl doesn’t kill him.”

“Hahah, okay--wait, what?!” 

But Garnet was gone.


	14. Open the Door

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pearl wakes up alone, only to find someone knew speaking with Rose Quartz. The future shifts, just a little.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I'm not really comfortable writing this much dialogue at once, so I hope it doesn't come out as choppy as I feel it has. This will be today's only chapter, I'm afraid. Happy Mother's Day to those who celebrate it. :^)

I awoke alone. It was the first time in a very long time that Rose was not waiting for me, or that Amethyst was not sleeping heavily atop my coffin lid. There was no even a torch aflame to offer me any light. It was as though I had been forgotten. Worriedly, I exited my bed.

“Rose?” I chirped, hoping that she was nearby. I strained my ears, listening for any sound from above. After becoming a vampire, I had learned that my senses had changed. I could see in the dark (though not as perfectly as Rose, who was much older than I and thus more attuned to her surroundings) and hear better than any person had a right to. Still, under the layers of rock and earth that made up the foundation of the castle, I had concentrate to hear anything. 

Laughter.

Rose was laughing, high above me, in what sounded like the dining hall. Confused, I exited the basement for the stairs, climbing higher and higher until I could hear her laughter more clearly. “Rose?” I pressed. Was Garnet with her? Or perhaps she and Amethyst were speaking. 

Then I heard a new voice. It was male, and youthful, and singing. 

Deep inside, something in me grew dark. I hissed, feeling my spear forming in my hand though I had not willed it to do so. Kill. Yes. Kill the intruder. My mind left me at that moment, and I charged toward the door and toward the new voice. Kill. Kill. Kill. 

Something warm slammed into me before I could reach the door. I tumbled to the side, righting myself on my knees almost instantly, spear ready to stab into whatever had tackled me. Amethyst growled, staring at me as though I were a demon. “Garnet told me I’d have ‘ta make sure you didn’t kill him, but I didn’t think she was serious.” 

I snarled, glaring at Amethyst for a moment before I my mind resurfaced. “Who is it,” I spat, more of a demand than a question. 

“His name is Greg, and he is very nice. He’s talking to Rose right now. Chill, Pearl. He’s no one dangerous.” Amethyst looked at me sideways, a touch of worry in her eyes. “You under control? Or do I have to take you down?”

Scoffing, I stood and dusted myself off. My spear disappeared back into the weapon room downstairs. “I am not some lunatic, Amethyst. I was merely...surprised that we have company. It has been years since a human has come to our door.” 

Laughing a little, Amethyst closed the gap between us and punched my arm playfully. “Good. I’d hate to have ‘ta tackle you again. But seriously, I haven’t seen you that jazzed up since the war. What got your panties in such a twist? Rose can handle herself.” She tipped her head to the side, looking up at me with her ears facing me. She was listening, waiting. I couldn’t answer her. I couldn’t let her know that my first instinct was to kill whomever dared to steal Rose away from me while I was asleep, guest or no. 

I swallowed, stalling for time. “Who is he?” I asked, though I was aware she had already answered that question. I shook my head. “Where did he come from? What does he want?” Without waiting for her to answer, I brushed by the werewolf and moved to the door. My hand paused on the polished handle before I turned it to push my way in. “Rose?”

She was laughing. Nearly in tears, in fact, as she held her sides. At first, she did not seem to notice my entrance. Instead, she was focused on the human before her. He was shorter than her, perhaps around my height or a little shorter, with long, flowing brown hair and had a grin on his face. He had stopped singing the moment I entered, seemingly noticing me before Rose could stop laughing. 

Glaring at the intruder, I stepped inside and took my place beside Rose Quartz. “Ahem,” I coughed into my hand. “Rose. Who is our...guest?”

She stopped laughing, though her eyes were still filled with her smile. “Oh! Pearl. This is Mr. Universe. He is a traveling musician. Amethyst found him asleep in my garden. His voice is lovely!” She hugged me a little, then motioned for the human to take a seat. “Mr. Universe, this is Pearl.” She motioned to me. 

Feathers a little ruffled, I offered the human a bow. “Welcome to the castle of Rose Quartz,” I said, voice a little stiff. I did not like this man. I did not like how he made Rose laugh. She was mine. Of that, I was certain. We had been through so much together--I had given up my life for her. How dare this mere human make her smile! “I trust you will be on your way in the morning?” 

“Actually, I have offered him a place to stay for a few days,” Rose said sweetly from beside me. “Your old room is still in rather good shape--very well cared for, though a touch dusty.” 

“Um.” The human scratched at the back of his head. His hair was probably crawling with lice. I shivered at the thought. “I don’t mean to be rude or anything. I just need some rest until I make my way to the next village. I’ll pay, I mean, if that helps.” 

Peering down my nose at him, I huffed. “No, no. By all means. Do as you wish.” There was a bitterness to my voice that Rose noted. She put her hand on my shoulder, looking down upon me with warning in her black eyes. I ignored her for the moment. “Come into our castle, take a room, make yourself at home. Yes. We might as well open an inn while we are at it.” 

“Pearl.”

“Please! If there is anything I might do to make you more comfortable, then by all means, tell me.”

“Pearl!” Rose’s voice was harsh. She squeezed my shoulder tightly, drawing me away and into a corner of the room so we might speak more privately. “Why are you acting like this?”

I growled. “Who is he, really! For all we know, he could be...he could be a spy! He could be someone sent here by the Diamond Court in an attempt to overthrow the peace! He could be here to kill you!” I raised my voice a small bit, and took pleasure in watching the human shrink back a little. 

Rose snarled back at me. Shocked, I stared up at her for a moment until she found her composure to speak. “Pearl. Mr. Universe is a guest here. I am only attempting to make him feel comfortable. You should do the same while he’s here. Please.” She took my slender hand in her own. “For me.” 

My mouth opened and closed, like a fish dying on dry land. Finally, I bowed my head. “I will do anything for you, Rose. If you ask me to do this, then I shall.” I kissed her fingers gently before releasing her hand. “I apologize.” 

“It’s alright, my Pearl.” 

I turned my back to her, looking at the human for a moment. “Perhaps I spoke...rashly,” I offered to him. “I will leave you both to yourselves.” I strode out of the room, the sting of jealousy still lingering in my heart. As I shut the door, I could hear their muffled conversation. 

“I’m sorry, Mr. Universe. Pearl has been through a lot with me. She is still a young vampire, and I believe the war left its mark upon her.” 

“No, it’s alright. I guess I’m a stranger here. I just didn’t think you had anyone else living here. Besides you and the werewolf, I mean.” 

Rose laughed. “Yes. Pearl lives here, as well, and has for a long time. She is my confidant.” 

“Oh?” 

“I love her, and trust her with my life.” Rose’s words heartened me a little. I put my hand to my chest, sighing. With nowhere else to be, I made my way to the library. I heard Amethyst behind me, sticking close to my heels.

Silently, we both entered the library, where I burst into tears. My lovely little werewolf held me tightly, licking my tears away, until I felt hollow. “What’s wrong, P?” she asked me, worriedly stroking my hair. 

“It’s not right,” I gasped through my tears. “It’s not right.”

“What’s not right?”

“Him!” I nearly shouted. “He...he...doesn’t belong here.”

Amethyst screwed up her face a little, then held me some more. In silence, I found warmth in her arms. I closed my eyes. Nestling my face into her hair, I continued to weep, not ready for the changes that were about to take place. 

***

Garnet felt the future shift, just a little, toward the path she had explored prior. She sat motionless as werewolf pups played at her feet. Slowly, she looked toward Rose’s castle, and sighed.


	15. Jealousy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pearl feels a twinge of envy and jealousy in her heart. Meanwhile, Amethyst is struggling to come to terms with the idea that Pearl might love Rose more than she loves her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Sorry I took so long to put this chapter up. I have been very ill lately--it's really one thing right after another. The next few chapters might not be up every day as I have previously promised, and again, I apologize for that. I will update as often as possible. Thanks for sticking with me.

My deepest fears began to come true.

The man known as Greg Universe remained in Rose Quartz’s castle, staying as a guest. He slept in what used to be my room, taking on our sleep schedule as easily as I had when I first came to live with Rose. He ate, as I once had, in the dining hall, and spent his waking hours speaking and laughing with my beloved Rose. 

He took her from me. That human man. He took her from me, and kept her to himself. Every night, I lost more and more of her, until I did not awaken at all from my dreamless slumber, for I knew that my heart would only be filled with the pain of losing my Rose. Anger grew in me, blossoming like a black flower of despair. I wanted to kill him. I wanted to taste his blood upon my tongue and kill him, if only to keep him away from my beloved Rose, my sweet, my darling. My life. 

Yet I could not break her happiness like waves upon a rocky shore. I could not take away the happiness she had found in him. I could not be that cruel. So, silently, I slept, or I stayed in the library, or I practiced with my sword and spear, or I wrote music for the organ. I kept to myself, locking my heart against the pain of losing her. 

Amethyst noticed. 

My werewolf would come to me in the night. She tried to make me smile again. Everything she did was to keep me sane, keep me happy. Yet nothing she could do made my pain fly away. I found some solace in her arms, but it was not enough. We made love, but my heart was not in it. Slowly, she too, began to drift away from me. 

I was utterly alone. 

One day, when I was bothered enough to awaken from my slumber and attempt to do something with my existence, a large hand gently grabbed me from behind, fingers slightly digging into my shoulder. I called out, but as soon as I was spun around, I saw Garnet looking down upon me with all three of her eyes. I said nothing to her, but shrugged her hand off. 

“You look like a mess,” she told me, voice as soft. She stroked the side of my pale face, then brushed a few fingers through the tangles of my hair. “Is there a reason you have been avoiding all of us? Rose asked me to ask you.”

I pushed Garnet’s hand away. “She could not ask me herself?” I spat. Hatred and anger grew in my chest, welling up like a bubble. “Is she busy with the human? That man? Ha! What reason does she have to worry about me? I have been used, Garnet. She used me for herself, swallowed me up and then threw me away when she found someone better.” Hot tears began to drip from my eyes. I snarled at Garnet, pushing her away from me, as I had done with Amethyst. “Rose does not love me. Not anymore.” 

“Is that what you think?” Garnet asked. Her voice was even as she spoke, eyes still focused on my face. I hated her for that--for the ability to stay neutral, to not show emotion. Oh, how I wished I could lock away my heart as she had! It was easy for her, of course--she was a relationship. Not one heart beat within her chest but two--Ruby’s and Sapphire’s. She was love incarnate. 

Tsking, I pulled away from her again. I looked down at my coffin. It looked so peaceful, so warm and inviting. I yearned to crawl back inside, to sleep, forever, in the darkness of the castle’s tomb. “Let me rest,” I pleaded. “Let me sleep and remember happier times.”

“Pearl,” Garnet said, her voice rising enough to be a slight snippy. “You have to get over this. Rose Quartz has fallen in love with a human male, yes. But she still loves you. She is worried for you--worried that you might be driven mad by her actions. It pains her to pick between you and Greg.” 

“The choice should be simple,” I snapped. 

Garnet lowered her voice. “As simple as you choosing between Rose and Amethyst?” 

I stopped short, unable to answer that. My mouth hung open slightly, my lips parted and my tongue pressed against my teeth. My fangs bit into my flesh, drawing the cold blood from my body. I wished to curse, to scream. Perhaps I was being childish. Perhaps I was wrong. That thought swirled in my mind, confusing me until I sat down atop my coffin lid and burst into tears. Garnet once again placed her hand on my shoulder. My strength was gone. I gently put my hand on top of one of hers, and I wept for hours. 

When I had calmed down, I stood. “I…” I started, but Garnet pressed one finger against my thin lips. I looked up at her, ashamed of myself. “What do I do?” I asked, frowning hard. 

Garnet cupped my face in her hands. “You love her. You continue to love her, no matter where this path leads. You lend her your strength. She loves you, Pearl. More than you know.” 

I licked my lips, then hugged Garnet tightly to my body, my face in her chest. I wept once more, squeezing the last few drops of tears from my eyes. “I’m sorry,” I whispered, more to myself than to her. Shivering a little, I pulled back. “Where is she now?” I asked. 

Shaking her head, Garnet held my hands gently in her own. “You look like a mess,” she reminded me. “You should take a nice, hot bath first. Care about yourself for once. You are worth more than you know.” Her fingers played at my lips, and I watched her as she thought for a moment. She seemed to be filled with a desire to tell me something, to speak more than she already had. Finally, after an internal struggle, she said softly, “Would you love her, even if she no longer existed in a way that you could see?” 

Fear crept into my being, freezing me in place for a moment. When my mouth finally started to work again, it was only to whisper, “What?” 

Garnet sighed. “Nevermind. Take your bath. Rose and Greg are outside, in the gardens. I am sure they will be there when you are finished.” 

Still shaken by her question, I watched her leave. I looked down on my pale, white hands, and shook for a solid moment before I started up the stairs after her. I wanted to go directly to the gardens, to see Rose, but once I caught a glimmer of my reflection in one of the mirrors hanging in the hall, I decided that Garnet’s suggestion of a nice, long bath would probably do wonders. I started for the large bathroom, peeling my night clothes off as I walked. 

Nude, I slipped into the hot water, allowing it to come over my nose and head until I was sinking down, down, down. It felt so nice! I rolled my shoulders, feeling stiff all over. Slowly, I rose to the surface again. 

Once I was finished with my bath, I gathered up my clothes that I had left in the hall, then padded back downstairs to the dresser Rose had had brought down from what had originally been my room. I picked out a light pink dress top with black trousers tucked into riding boots, and, only because it was now winter, my cloak. I stopped for a moment, running my thumb up and down the hem of the thing, feeling its softness and warmth. Closing my eyes, I remembered how nice it had been when I first put it on, years and years prior when I had been human still. 

“Thought I’d find you down here,” a voice said from behind me. I turned my head toward Amethyst, listening as she jumped down the last few steps and curled upon on top of my coffin. “So you’re going out today? What a freakin’ surprise. I thought you were going to sleep the rest of the world away.” 

I hissed a little, looking at her. “Amethyst,” I said, voice softer than it had been a moment before. “I...I’m sorry.” 

“Yeah, well.” Amethyst turned her back on me. I gently leaned down to stroke her ears, but she growled at me the moment I touched her fur. “Back off. I’m only down here to make sure you ain’t dead. And guess what? You are! Holy crap. Because you’re a vampire. And you’re being a waste of one, if you asked me.” 

“Amethyst! I said I was sorry! I...I just…”

“Just what? Love her more than me?” Amethyst snapped. She turned, only to leer at me. “I was so stupid to think that, after all of those years, you actually still loved me. No. It was Rose that you love. You love her so much more than me. I’m just...I’m just a throw back! Something to play with when she’s not around! Well guess what?! She’s not around right now! So are you going to kiss me or what!? No, of course not. Because. I’m. Not. Good. Enough!” 

“Amethyst!” I nearly screamed, holding the sides of my head. “Stop! Stop it! I do love you!” 

Tears were rolling down her face now, wetting her skin and her hair. “Then what? Why! Why am I only enough for you when Rose isn’t in the picture?! And what about now! Rose is with Greg. That’s how it’s gonna be! So I thought that I’d have you all to myself! But no! It’s like...it’s like you’ve forgotten about me…” 

“I…” I started, but she fled up the stairs, leaving me alone once more. I bowed my head, realizing that I had treated Amethyst as Rose was treating me. Like a second class lover. Swallowing, I realized that, somehow, I had to make everything right again. Somehow…

***

“I can’t help but thinking that I’m messing everything up,” Greg sighed, looking at one of the flowers Rose had pointed out to him. “I mean...you sorta had a system before me, right? You and that Pearl girl were a thing. I mean…”

Rose laughed a little, rubbing her fingers along the bard’s back. “I still love her,” she said dreamily. “But I can love more than one person at a time.” 

Greg bit his lip. “She seems awfully upset, I mean. And I don’t want to get on the bad side of a vampire. I...I’m just a squishy human, after all.” He looked up at Rose, showing fear in his eyes. She smiled back at him, however, and kissed his lips. Lost in that touch, the young man shut up and kissed her back. 

From one of the windows of the castle, Amethyst looked down at them. She growled slightly, lost in her own thoughts. Greg hadn’t done anything wrong--at least, not in her eyes. She was more than happy that Rose had found another person to love. It seemed to her that Rose Quartz was just that kind of woman that everyone loved, whether they knew it or not. Hell, even she had feelings for the giant woman, though she would never admit it. 

The thought that Pearl was too stupid to see that Rose was no longer hers, though...that pissed her off. The werewolf snarled a little, then turned away from the window and continued down the hall, making her way to nowhere, and fast. 

***

When I found them in the garden, they were kissing.

“Ahem. I hope this isn’t a bad time.” I coughed into my hand, eyes adverted. 

Greg blushed deeply, pulling back to rub the back of his head. Rose laughed, still holding his free hand. “Ah, Pearl,” she whispered, pulling me to her for a kiss of our own. I savored it, leaning in and inserting my tongue to press against her plump lips. She tasted of sweet wine and chocolate and everything beautiful. Her skin was chilled, but I left that up to the fact that there was snow on the ground (though her flowers still bloomed as though it was spring still). Greg watched us, and I watched him. 

He turned away first, and I felt I was the winner. 

When Rose and I parted, she smiled down at me. “I’m glad,” she breathed. “I’m so glad you are here with me right now. My Pearl...My lovely Pearl, Mr. Universe and I have news.” 

My heart sank in my chest. “Oh?” I asked, trying to make my voice sound as passive as possible. 

“He has asked me to marry him. And I have said yes.”


	16. Learn How To Love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After learning of Greg and Rose's impending marriage, Pearl goes slightly insane. Will the others be able to find her and bring her back to her senses, or is she lost to the wilds forever?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: For some reason, I feel physically better after writing for a little while. Maybe I should write more when I'm ill rather than staying away from it. On the other hand, I'm not sure if anything I wrote is actually readable. I'm a little delirious, so the chapters I release today might reflect that. Sorry, folks. I hope you enjoy, however.

Greg coughed into his hand, blinking at how brutally Rose Quartz had delivered the news of their marriage. I watched him through cold, narrowed eyes; he did not meet my gaze. Rose was smiling gently, her hand holding Greg’s. 

A wedding. Rose Quartz would marry Greg Universe.

My mouth opened and closed, gasping like a fish. I could not comprehend what was happening, what had been said. At my side, I could feel my hands opening and gripping, becoming a fist. My fist tightened, and I imagined it going through Greg’s face, through his skull, splattering him all over the beautiful, snow stained flowers. It was within my power, but Rose would hate me forever if I damaged or killed the human. So instead I simply gathered myself as best as I could, and hissed out, “Congratulations.” 

Then I turned on my heels and fled into the forest. 

***

I do not know how many nights I spent in the woods. During the day, I would hide beneath brush and leaves, or duck into a dark cave. I had enough sense, at least, to keep myself away from the sun and alive. The nights were a blur, however; I remembered running with werewolves, running with deer, running in water, leaping off of cliffs. I remembered the taste of fallen snow, the swirl of it falling upon me. Then the snow melted, eventually, and unenchanted flowers grew. They sprouted, and everything was lovely and green; then the green melted into death colors, the colors of fire and earth, then to snow once more. 

***

“Where could she have gone?” Amethyst half asked, half snarled. “My pack saw her last year, but only for a minute. She ran with them. It was insane, they said. She ran like an actual wolf, like some sort of mad woman. And then? Then she was gone, and it was morning. What if something happened to her?” There was panic and anger all rolled into one in her voice. 

Garnet screwed up her face for a moment, looking past the werewolf to Rose Quartz, how sat in the corner of the library and wept. “Rose.” Her voice was stern, unyielding. “You have to go through with your plans. Allow me to look for Pearl.” She offered a weak smile. “You are in love. Greg will not always be here for you--remember. You and Pearl are immortal. Greg is not.” 

Rose sniffled a little, looking to the window. “I only hope she is safe. I hope she has enough sense to keep herself alive.” 

“She has,” Garnet confirmed, nodding a little. “I see clips of her future, moments in time when she comes into herself again. Pearl will resurface. She is not dead; I can promise that.” 

Hot tears fell from Rose’s black eyes. “My love...I just hope she understand that I still love her, that I never stopped.” 

Amethyst turned to look at Rose, a frown upon her face. “So why marry Greg?” she asked, voice slightly accusatory. “Why break her heart like that?”

“That wasn’t my intent!” Rose said, voice as loud as it got. She buried her face in her hands, weeping. “I have always been a creature of my heart. I have always tried to follow what I think is right; I...I didn’t think she would react this way! I love her. I do! I love her just as much as I love Mr. Universe. I...I only wanted…”

The werewolf shook her head. “You broke her heart, Rose,” she said, though her voice was softer now. Gently, she put her head in Rose’s lap. “You broke her.”   
Rose closed her eyes, tears still flowing down her cheeks. Her voice rose slightly as she started to sing--the only thing she could think to do.

“If I could begin to be,  
Half of what you think of me  
I could do about anything…  
I could even learn how to love,  
Like you…”

Garnet bowed her head slightly. “Rose. I will bring her back.” She left then, allowing Amethyst to soak up the song. 

***

I awoke one night, covered by the corpse of a huge stag. I was tucked, nicely, inside of it, the blood soaked into what remained of my clothing. I could taste the thing in my mouth, my lips sticky with its blood. I shivered and crawled out of it. The night was cool against my skin, but I ignored it. I needed to find water. I needed to wash the blood and guts off of myself. 

It was as though I had snapped back into place. For the first time in what felt like a long time, I was myself. I could think full, rational thoughts. In the darkness, I blinked, and felt my way around until my eyes focused. Before me was a huge lake. Perfect. 

I dipped myself into the water. It was freezing, refreshing. Letting out a moan, I slipped under the surface, sinking to the bottom until the water engulfed me entirely. I scrubbed at my skin with my fingernails, willing the viscera to leave me. 

When I darted to the top of the lake again, I heard someone moving along the shore. I froze, listening, until I heard someone speak my name. Turning, I looked upon Garnet, who was in the water, up to her thighs, coming for me. Moving as to not worry her, I swam toward her. 

“I found you,” Garnet said, pulling me toward her. I accepted the hug she gave me. Only the shreds of clothing I had left upon my body separated the two of us. “Rose is so worried about you, Pearl. She has been for the last year.” 

“Year?” I echoed. “I have been gone for that long?” 

“Don’t you remember?” 

Bowing my head, I hissed slightly. She gripped my arm tightly as though afraid that I would escape her grasp. “I remember nothing,” I half lied. There were flashes of things I could remember, but for the most part, I had lived as a wild animal. “Are they...wed?”

“No. Rose wanted to find you first. Greg is worried about you as well.” 

I laughed at that. “So the human is worried? About me? Why?”

Garnet frowned. “Because he is a good person, and does not wish harm to come to the woman Rose Quartz loves.” She seemed to grind her teeth a little, then poked the pearl in my forehead. “It was not long ago that you were human, too.” 

We moved out of the water to the shore. I dried off as best as I could. “How did you find me?” I asked Garnet. 

She smiled a little. “I have my ways,” she said, voice low and calm. “You must be freezing.” From seemingly nowhere, she pulled a huge, plush blanket. I took a moment to remember that she had been made of two witches; this was probably just a parlor trick she had learned long ago. Carefully, she pulled the blanket around my thin, shaking shoulders. Then she picked me up in sturdy arms. “I will carry you back. I can’t risk losing you.” There was a joke in there, somewhere. 

Gently, I leaned my head against her chest, and fell asleep. 

***

“She fell asleep when I picked her up. She must be exhausted.” 

Someone scooped me up, gently taking me into fresh arms. “Oh, thank the stars she is safe.” Rose’s voice. I wanted to open my eyes, to look upon her, but I couldn’t. Garnet had placed a sleeping spell on me, I realized, to keep me safe and secure as long as she could. Rose stroked the side of my face. I could hear the sad smile in her voice as she sang to me. 

“If I could begin to be,  
Half of what you think of me…”

In her arms, I drifted off, and slept for nearly a week. 

I awoke to the sound of music.


	17. Like a Comet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pearl awakens to the sound of singing. She confronts Greg, but things do not go as originally planned. Meanwhile, Rose has to think hard about the future.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Holy smokes, an update. Sorry for the slow upload speed, guys. I've been wicked busy and out of it. I'm currently trying to find a job. Also, my computer is slowly dying. D:

Someone was singing. A male. The voice was, though I did not wish to admit it, beautiful. My mind was a blur, unable to focus on much more than the tone and pitch of the song. Words were impossible to pick out. I pricked my ears, slowly, slowly opening my eyes until I saw the underside of my coffin’s lid. With a yawn, I pushed the lid off. I rose up from my bed to look around. 

Rose was gone--her coffin was empty. Amethyst was absent as well. I sighed a little. Everyone was angry with me; I was certain of it. I had been gone for a year. An entire year of insanity that had coated my brain. 

Still, that man sang. 

I stretched my legs and arms, my back arching a little and cracking as I left my coffin. I dressed, then started to follow the sound of the song upstairs. As I pressed forward, the lyrics became easier to understand, easier to hear. 

“Everything is so clear,  
to my destiny I steer...  
This life in the stars is all I've ever known--  
Stars and stardust and infinite space is my only home…”

I tipped my head to the side. The library. It was Greg Universe, the man that had stolen my lovely Rose Quartz from me. I scowled, turning away from the music for the moment. I caught my reflection in one of the hallway mirrors. I looked like a pale beast. My blue eyes had deep, thick, black circles under them. My skin had an almost grey hue to it, and my pearl was dim. I hissed at myself, my fangs feeling heavier than normal in my mouth. 

How long had I been asleep? How long did Garnet’s spell last?

More importantly--did I need blood? Rose and I usually survived without it, relying on the power in our Gems to keep our bodies whole. Occasionally, we would need to drink from the throats of a pig or cow, but only enough to keep us sane. Human blood was, safe to say, off of the menu. 

However, there was a young man who could probably use a little less blood and a lot more fear of what he was courting, singing in the other room…

My eyes darkened as I moved back to the library door. I listened for a moment to make sure Rose was not inside--Greg was alone--before I opened the doors and stepped inside. Instantly, he whirled around from the paper he was writing on with ink and quill. He relaxed when he saw me, and even managed a small smile. I only glared at him. He froze again, then sighed and rubbed at the back of his neck. 

“Pearl...Look. I wanted to apologize to you. I know...I know you’re in love with Rose, and I mean…” His voice trailed off for a moment as he sheepishly looked at me. “She’s a wonderful woman.”

I continued to glare at the man. Then, I moved forward, swinging my narrow hips a little as I stepped up to him. I looked him over, trying to see what Rose saw in him. Nothing. I saw nothing. Just a man. I smirked at that thought, and reached out a hand. I fluffed at his wild hair, laughing high. “Yes, Rose is a wonderful being. I have been with her for some time now…” 

At my touch, Greg jolted. “Um. Yeah...I..uh...she told me?”

“Oh?” I said, my voice almost a purr. “What else has she told you?”

Greg gulped, biting his lip. “I know about...the war?” he said, voice rising up to make it more of a question than anything else. “I know you both fought in it, side by side. She trusted you--still trusts you, I guess.” 

“And?” I prompted. “Did she tell you how deadly I am with a blade or spear?”

“Y-yeah, she might have mentioned that…”

I turned my back to him then, laughing again. “I am Rose’s right hand. I am her servant and her lover. She is my everything. There simply is no room for someone like you.” I looked at him over my shoulder, my eyes narrowed slightly. Seductively. I had never used my body to lure someone in like I was attempting to now--I had never seen myself as beautiful, after all. Now, however...It was something I had to try. 

I liked my lips. “Did she tell you how I used to sup upon those willing to offer their necks to me? I was younger then, of course. I needed the blood. It’s been so long…” I moved closer to him, sitting on the desk he had been using to write his lyrics. I crossed my slender legs as my hands moved to his face. I licked my lips, smirking. “Has Rose sampled you?”

Startled, Greg tried to back up, but found his back to the wall. He shivered a little, eyes wide as he looked at me. There was fear there. Good! Let him fear me. 

Then, to my surprise, there was fierce determination. He pushed against me, coming nose-to-nose with me. “I love Rose with every fiber of my being. I am not going to be scared off by the likes of you.” I reeled back a little, surprised. “Pearl, I know that Rose loves and cares about you. Deeply. But I love her too! I’m not going to give up a wonderful woman just because there is some stiff competition. Besides--why can’t we both love her?”

A truce? Was he honestly offering a truce?

I backed off, laughing. “You think she’ll fancy you when you’ve become old and brittle? Humans are a fleeting pastime. You’re just a toy to satisfy her curiosity for now.” I shrugged my shoulders. “Honestly, you should be thanking me for running you off. Your heart will hurt less if you leave now.”

“I’m not leaving Rose, Pearl. I fully intend to marry her.” 

Snarling now, I pushed my face close to his once more. “And what could a bard like you offer her? Heartache when you parish and a few lyrics to remember you by--if she remembers you for more than a decade after your death! She and I are immortal beings--”

“You’re afraid to lose her, aren’t you?” Greg asked suddenly. Stunned, I backed off once more, my hand going to my chest. I stared at him, my eyes wide. I tried to stammer out a ‘no,’ but he pushed forward with a soft, tender voice. “I understand what it’s like to be scared. I gave up everything--my parents, a good home--for my music. Before Rose? I just sang for the money and the bread. It used to be my passion, but...things changed.” He looked away, running a hand through his long, brown mane. “Then Rose...I suddenly found my voice again. I wanted to sing. I want to sing now! I love her. She makes me a better man.” His eyes met mine. “So what’s your story? What’s your song?”

“My...song?”

“What about Rose makes you want to fight for her so badly?”

I gasped a little, looking around. Anywhere but at this man. “She...is my life. I was a slave,” I whispered, barely audible over the fire crackling in the hearth. “Before the war, humans were slaves to the monsters. We were forced to mine for gems. Rose...saved me. She took me out of that life.” Tears slowly started to form at the corners of my eyes. “Though I knew she did not buy me to be her servant, I threw my life at her feet. She is like...a goddess to me. I worship her because I love her...I love her because I worship her.” 

Greg crossed his arms over his chest, head tipped to the side as I started to cry before him. He looked a little ashamed, a little upset himself. Carefully, he put his hand on my shoulder. I flinched away, and he quickly took his hand back. “I love her. Rose Quartz is my everything!” I sobbed. Holding myself, I shook my head quickly. “You...you couldn’t possibly understand…”

“We’re very similar,” he said quietly. “Pearl...Please. I don’t want to fight you for her. But understand...I’ll never give her up. I’ll never stop loving her, in the same way you do.” He bowed his head a little. “Will you let me marry her?”

“Let you?” I echoed, my voice hollow. “Do I have a choice?”

Biting his lip, Greg sighed. “I don’t know.” He looked a little defeated, and yet...There was a stillness to him, a quiet that was a raging storm. He would fight me forever for Rose’s hand. “Instead of being enemies, Pearl...I...I’d like to be your friend.” He offered me a weak, slightly crooked smile. 

He offered me his hand. 

Slowly, slowly, I took it. 

***

“If you go through with this, your destiny will change. You will cease to be, Rose Quartz. Your son will take your place, eventually.”

“There will be no son if I remain the way I am.” There was pain in Rose’s voice.

Garnet sighed a little, crossing her arms before her. “It is your choice. I cannot sway you either way. If you love Greg Universe, then you should be with him. If you do not…”

Rose sighed, standing up from the stone bench in the gardens. A huge, pink lion walked up to her, nuzzling her hands as she stroked his mane. Garnet watched the creature, then turned her attention back to Rose. “Will Pearl--?” Rose started, then paused. There were tears in her eyes. 

“Even as we speak…” Garnet started. She unfolded her arms, leaving her palms up. “Pearl will love your son like her own. I could tell you that even without my abilities. I will love him. Amethyst will love him. Greg will love him, with all of his being, just as much or more than he loves you.” 

“Why did you tell me?” Rose whispered. “Why?”

“Because…” There was a sudden pain in Garnet’s voice. “Because I knew you were having second thoughts about marrying Greg Universe. About giving up your immortality. In the end, it is your choice, Rose.”

“I love him so much. So much! In a way I have never loved another before. Even Pearl…” She bit her lip. “What am I to do?”

Garnet shook her head. “You’ll know.” 

“How?” Rose asked, burying her face into the lion’s soft fur. 

“You’ll know.”


	18. Destiny

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Destiny is an odd thing, isn't it? Love, laughter, and life...what does it all mean, in the end? Is love worth possibly dying for?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: It's been a while. I'm so sorry for that--I've been looking for a job and running back and forth to the hospital. Between my grandfather and my uncle, I swear I'm going to worry my hair white. Thanks for the understanding, everyone. I hope you all enjoy the chapter!
> 
> P.S.--this is going up literally hours before the episode "Mr. Greg" is going to be aired on U.S. television. I have my own predictions as to what the episode is going to be about, and I think some of that leaked into this chapter! :D

Slowly, slowly, the rivers and streams of Fate began to take a different course. Once, they had been straight, narrow things that lead directly into infinity with ease; at least, that is, for Rose Quartz and her beloved Pearl. There was never a Greg Universe. There was only eternal life, love, and laughter. 

But that it was different now. 

Garnet could see the streams and rivers shift; there were whirlpools now, and winding hills that doubled back upon themselves to change the ultimate course of eternity’s flow. At current, the strongest stream lead to a wedding, to years of bliss, of sudden mortality and love; past that was untimely death bringing forth new life and unsteady beginnings. It made her heart ache and her head hurt, but she had taken it upon herself to make it her duty to look into the future, to watch, and to gently guide. 

So, from the shadows, she watched the future change, shift, and turn. 

Carefully, she pushed herself away from the wall she had been leaning on. She was currently in Rose’s massive castle, standing in one of the halls leading to the library. The windows allowed bright light into the corridor; it was sleeping hours for Rose and Pearl. Amethyst was slumbering upon Pearl’s coffin, as per usual, and Greg was snoring away in the room that had once belonged to Pearl. Only Garnet was awake, listening and watching and protecting. 

This was her family, after all. She loved them so.

She left the halls for the gardens. That odd, pink lion slept in the sun, soaking up the warm rays. He opened one eye lazily to watch her as she stepped by him. His tail wagged, once, then dipped back to the ground. Garnet smiled crookedly at the thing; as dangerous as the creature might be, he was more of a large child than a massive murdering machine. 

There were ghosts here, bodies buried in the gardens. Past lovers Rose had had before she met Pearl, before Greg. There were no headstones, just roses and lilies and all other sorts of flowers Garnet did not know the names of. She could feel them, however--those spirits--drifting about. Looking. Waiting. Wanting. 

It made her cold, but she ignored it. She walked through the ghosts, through the gardens, until she found the start of the forests beyond Rose’s lands. That was werewolf country now, where Amethyst’s pack lived. It had once been her coven’s lands, when she was Sapphire and Ruby; but that, like all things, had changed. 

The leader of the pack was waiting for her there, watching her with waiting eyes. 

“There will be a wedding,” Garnet told the alpha, smiling a little. “There will be a child, and love. But there will also be death.”

“And then? Who will protect the people of this land?”

“We will. Rose’s army still exists in us; Amethyst, Pearl and I will be here to help. You do not need to worry. No one does. Let the future run its course.” 

The alpha nodded, and fled into the forest. 

***

Rose grinned broadly, stars in her dark eyes. The dress was beautiful. It smelled of lilacs and roses with a hint of the dye used to make the bottom pink. She spun in it, feeling like a princess from the old stories she used to read as a child. All in all, she sparkled like the galaxy above. 

I watched her, smiling lazily, eyes half lidded. “Do you like it?” I asked. I hoped, deep down, that she loved it. I had spent many weeks learning to sew specifically so I could make this garment for her; her wedding dress. I saw it as a testament of my love for her. My fingers ached from the hours I had spend with a needle pinched between them. Every inch of the dress had been carefully crafted by my own hands, just to fit her. To hug her. To love her. 

“Oh, my Pearl...It’s so beautiful! It is perfect. I could have had someone make it...but you...you took it upon yourself to learn, to create! I love it!” She grabbed up the hems of the garment and hiked the skirts up over her knees so it would not drag upon the ground. Quickly, on fleet feet, she moved toward me for a kiss. I accepted it thankfully, willingly. My hands touched her shoulders, her breasts and hips as I explored her. When she pulled back, Rose’s face was flushed and there was laughter in her voice. “You are a woman of many talents, my Pearl.” 

I blushed a little, ducking my head. “You look beautiful,” I whisper to her. We touched fingertips together for a moment, perhaps a little longer than we should have. I felt the engagment ring upon her finger. My hand dropped. “Mr. Universe will love it.” 

“I love it,” Rose Quartz pushed. She was still smiling at me. Carefully, she pulled me to her body. I could feel the bump of her gem press against the upper section of my stomach, almost at my chest. We were oddly positioned; me in a chair and her standing. Still, it was there. That connection of what we were--monsters. Vampires. Lovers. Dipping my head, I pressed my pearl against that gentle lump. 

Rose sighed. I looked up at her, head tilted to one side. “Is something wrong?” I asked. She, looking surprised and slightly ashamed, looked away. That was when I knew for certain that there was something she was not telling me. “Rose, what is it?”

“Don’t be so hard on Mr. Universe. On...Greg,” she said, voice gentle yet husky. Frowning, I pressed my slender hand against her cheek. She pushed me away, though not through anger. “Be friends with him. Learn to love him...let him be apart of this family, Pearl.”

“I have tried. I have been trying,” I promised, though I hated that my voice sounded like a whine. I looked down at my feet, clad in riding boots for the day. “It hurts that you love him so, but I think I have begun to understand. Not necessarily what you see in that man. Honestly! He has nothing to offer you, and--” I shut up quickly, then sighed. “I’m sorry. It will take me time. I hurt. I yearn for you, Rose. I love you. You know I would do anything for you.”

Rose put two fingers under my chin and made me look at her. “Then do this for me. Please. Promise me, no matter what happens, that you shall love him like family. That you will do nothing to harm him.”

“Rose!” I exclaimed. “Please. I promise to try.” 

She sighed. Pulling away from me, she turned back to the mirror to look upon her beauty. Carefully, she smoothed the dress out. “Tomorrow,” she whispered. “Tomorrow, I will be married, and give up my immortality to become human again.”

I looked down at the floor. Tears began to well up in my eyes, but I hid them well. Turning away, I forced a smile. “It’s what you want. To be human again. And the spell only works with the power of true love. He had better love you enough for the spell to work.” 

“I...I have my fears, but I know this is the right path for me to take,” Rose whispered. Upon hearing that catch in her voice, I looked at her. She was crying. HIding it from me, yes, just as I had attempted to hide it from her. Gently, gently, I wrap my slender arms around her curvaceous middle. We clung to each other tightly for a moment before parting. We looked at each other for a long, long time. 

Someone knocked on the door. “Um. Hello? Is Rose in there?” Greg. I rolled my eyes a little, waving Rose away from the door. “You can’t see her until the wedding tomorrow!” I snapped at the door. 

“I know, but I was hoping--”

“Ugh! I’ll come out.” I looked at Rose a second longer, taking her in, then stepped outside to deal with the human. “What do you want? Shouldn’t you be resting?” There was a touch more concern in my voice than I would have liked. It didn’t help when I added, voice hushed, “Did you eat something today?”

Greg offered me a smile. “My stomach’s been in knots. I’ve been too choked up and nervous to eat. I was just hoping to talk to Rose through the door before I went down for a nap. I didn’t know you were in there. Sorry, Pearl. I...Um. I understand that you want some alone time with her.” He looked at me in the eye, and I found that I had to look away from him. He was so sincere, so gentle. I could not take it. “I love her, Pearl. That’s not going to change. I’m just glad that you’re letting me in. And I’m trying with you, too!”  
“She wants us to be family. I...I am not going to chase you away. We’ve talked about this. I might not like her choice, but I respect it. I am not going to harm you, or anything like that.” 

There was a sudden blast of lightning from outside. I nearly jumped, and Greg actually did. I tried to hold back my nervous laughter at the sight of him afraid. He looked at me, sheepishly, and joined my giggle. Together, we laughed for what felt like a solid hour, though it was probably closer to just a minute or two. Still, I felt more relaxed once we stopped, smiling at each other in our shared silliness. 

“I didn’t know it was supposed to storm tonight!” Greg said, wiping his eyes with the back of his hand. “I hope it doesn’t rain out the wedding tomorrow.” 

“You will be married in the gardens,” I reminded him. “Rain or shine, they are always a pleasant place to be. It will be a nice wedding. Even if I have to hold umbrellas over both of you.” 

Greg blinked at me. “You’d...you’d do that?”

Now it was my turn to laugh, alone. “Of course. For Rose’s sake, I would do anything. Even if that means keeping you dry.” I poked him lightly in the chest, grinning at him. He looked unsure for a moment, then laughed with me once more. Much to my chagrin, he pulled me into a hug so tight that, were I human still, I would be unable to breathe. When I pulled back, my face was set in stone. “I do still wish you wouldn’t marry her, take her from me. I have to be honest. You have nothing to offer her. Just a short life.” 

Crossing his arms over his chest, Greg shook his head. His long, brown hair shifted against his neck and back, creating a slight breeze in the hallway. “I know you’ll never understand it, Pearl. Maybe you’ve lost all of your humanity. I don’t know. I know you are a good person who would protect Rose at all costs--even from someone she loves. Someone like me. But I do have something to offer her--my love. My time. My everything.” 

I sighed a little, fluffing his hair with the back of my hand. “Whatever you say, Mr. Universe.” 

“That’s right.” He grinned again, broadly and happily. Then, quickly, his smile faded. “Um. Pearl. Will the spell that makes Rose human again...hurt her?”

“I could kill her, if you don’t love her enough,” I said bluntly, a scowl upon my features. 

I watched as Greg’s face fell for a moment, then became overfilled with confusion and horror. “What?!” he shouted. Quickly, he grabbed my arm and pulled me toward him, forcing me to stare him in the eye. I tried to pull back, but, somehow, even with my vampiric strength, I found myself weak. “No one told me that! I can’t do that to her!” 

Part of me wanted to smile, to hug him gently and tell him “Oh well, I suppose the wedding is off.” At the same time, a smaller part of me--a terrible, horrible part of me that was growing--wanted to hug him and tell him it was alright, she would not die, they would grow old and love each other for eternity. Conflicted, I could only pull back and storm off. 

***

Garnet froze. The future’s path was suddenly in danger of shifting, of changing. Erasing everything that she had been watching since Greg Universe had appeared. What had happened? What was happening? 

She looked up at the castle from below in the gardens, where she and Amethyst had been setting up for the small ceremony that was to happen tomorrow night. The werewolf noted that something was wrong, and started to wave her hand before all three of Garnet’s eyes. The stitched-together construct was, however, looking far away, into the depths of time. 

“Uh, Garn?” Amethyst whispered. “What’s up?” 

Garnet straightened, clearing her throat as she looked at Amethyst. “Nothing,” she said. “Move that pillar there. We cannot help, not now.” 

“Um. Okaaaaaaaaay…”

Gritting her teeth, Garnet looked away. “Believe me. I don’t like it anymore than you.” 

Still confused, Amethyst shrugged. “Okay. Whatever.” She moved to the pillar in question and attempted to heft it onto her shoulder. 

***

Greg was nowhere to be found. The wedding would start in less than an hour, and Rose was panicked. No one had seen the human since the night before, when I had left him standing in the hallway. He had not shown up to gather his wedding garb, and everything in the room he was staying in had been untouched. 

He was gone. 

“Yo, maybe he just got cold feet,” Amethyst offered, her teeth crunching on an apple dipped in caramel. Humans and members of the tattered Vampire Court spoke in hushed tones throughout the castle, the occasional werewolf keeping conversation with others to a minimum. The guests were uneasy, noting the lack of a groom as well. I gently put my hand on Amethyst’s head, shaking my head a little. “You don’t think so?”

“Something must have happened,” Garnet said. She was unusually fidgety. “I do not like this.” 

Deep inside, I knew that this was all my fault. Rose’s wedding was going to be ruined because of me. Because I told Greg the secret everyone had been keeping from him--that Rose might, indeed, die if the spell did not work properly. If his soul did not touch hers just right, if their love was not strong enough to meld them together through marriage, then the gem embedded in her would crack and she would be killed. I, alone, had put that fear into Greg. I had run him off, just as I had promised not to do.

And, most terribly, Rose was paying for it. 

With my hands firmly grasped at my side, I nodded, mostly to myself. “I will find him.” 

Amethyst and Garnet exchanged a look. “Maaaaaaaaaaybe you aren’t the best person to go looking for him,” Amethyst said, her attention fully on me now. “You know, you two don’t have the best track record at talking to each other.”

“No. This is right,” Garnet said after a moment. “Go find him, Pearl. There are too many twists and turns right now for me to look for him. I...I’m useless.” She frowned and turned away. 

I nodded again. “Keep Rose safe until I return.” With that, I left the castle, riding on one of the horses into the closest town. There was a lone inn there. Somehow, I knew Greg would be there. He was not one for drinking his worries away, but he was one to sink deeply into music to relax himself. 

The inn was entertaining a group of travelling musicians that night from another land. Greg had expressed interest in them a few nights prior, hoping to find the time to attend a performance after the wedding, before the band left. They had even been invited to the wedding, but had politely declined, as they were very tired from their journey. Instead, that night, other musicians from the area were attempting to join them by showing off their own talents. 

My horse must have sensed my unease. She slowed beneath me, shaking her head this way and that as I brought her into the stables. I offered her up to the stable hand before quickly ducking inside. 

The stench of humanity assaulted me. There was sweat and blood and piss, the smells all mixing together and making me gag. Beer and other spirits ran freely as the loud music swelled and swallowed me whole. I pressed my back against the wooden wall, my blue eyes glancing over the crowd. 

Then there was sudden silence, followed by a beautiful voice drifting up from the impromptu stage. 

“Do you believe in destiny?  
Close your eyes and leave the rest to me…  
Do you believe in fantasy?  
I have to when it’s right in front of me, oh…”

Greg. I started toward the front, pushing the masses of human flesh away from me. 

“What are you doing here, in the real world?”

I could see the top of his head now. The crowd was pushing back against me, threatening to swallow me up and crush me. I still pushed through, gritting my teeth and hissing. 

“What are you doing here, so close I could touch you?”

So close--

“What are you doing here, and what are you doing to me--!” 

“Greg!” I shouted as the music around him swelled. “Greg!” I finally pushed my way to the stage, panting hard. I looked at him, and he at me. Without another word, I grabbed his hand. “She loves you more than anything in this world! You need to go back--you need to marry her!” 

“Wha-?” he asked, blinking. “Pearl, you said she could die!” 

“She won’t. I...I believe in the two of you! I believe in the love that you share.” Tears threatened my eyes. I allowed them to fall as I pulled him off of the stage. “Please, Greg! She is torn apart without you! Rose Quartz loves you more than anything else in this world--more...more than even me! And that means something, Greg! Don’t let her go. Never let her go!” 

Silenced, Greg looked at me with those deep brown eyes. There were tears there, too, waiting to spill out over his cheeks. He looked like a wreck, like he hadn’t slept. Perhaps he had not. Perhaps he had disappeared after I had abandoned him, running to the nearest out…

Behind us, the crowd had grown silent. I ignored the mass of humanity all together. Greg watched me for a moment, watched the tears falling from my eyes. Then he stood from the stool he had been sitting on while he sang, and put his free hand over my own. He smiled, his tears finally falling. “Well, what am I waiting for? I have a woman to marry!” 

I looked upon him, and laughed with my heart, pure joy spilling out from my throat.


	19. The Wedding

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The time for Rose and Greg's wedding has finally come.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Thank you all for your kind comments. I'm so pleased and happy that so many people actually like this story! It makes me so happy. Secondly, this is a very short chapter, mostly because I've hit the dreaded writer's block. Hopefully it clears up quickly!

Spiced wine flowed freely through the night. There were candied apples, and small pies, along with goblets of blood donated by happy human friends for us vampires to sup upon. The party before the wedding was lively now that Greg had been found; Rose had heard the news and broke down in gleeful tears. 

Then the wedding itself…

By my word, it was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. Rose and Greg said their vows, voices oddly quiet as though they were too afraid of speaking any louder in case they shattered the calm cast over them. It was held in the garden, without rain, thankfully. All of Rose’s blossoms were open, watching in awe. Their sweet scents filled the air, coating it like honey. 

I watched from the back of the crowd, my arms folded over my thin chest. Garnet and Amethyst stood nearby, watching as well. The three of us were connected then, in that instant. We watched as Rose gave herself over to Greg, their love mingling in the air like the calm, like the flower scent. Everything came together, over them. It was nothing short of magical. 

There was cheering when they kissed. I blushed deeply, turning my head away. I might have been the one to save the night, but even the idea of the two of them being intimate with each other...It still hurt a freshly dug wound. Ignoring it, I offered up my clapping approval, as did the other guests. Silence filled the garden then. I lifted my head to watch Greg and Rose slip away. 

Garnet moved. “It is time for the spell,” she said, voice both soft and harsh at once. “Pearl, Amethyst. Keep the guests entertained until we return.” 

“I...I want to see,” I started, but she held up one gem-embedded hand. I stopped, looking up at her with worry. “What do you see, Garnet? Please. Please, tell me so I may relax. Their love is enough, isn’t it? Please!” I was begging now, tears filling my eyes. 

She said nothing, but turned away from me to follow after the newly married couple. 

Amethyst touched me, her clawed hand touching my hip. I looked down at her. Carefully, we embraced. I found solace and love in her when I needed it--and I needed it at that moment more than ever. Squeezing my eyes shut, I let her lead me into the castle. I allowed the other guests sweep me up, move me along, like a leaf upon a swiftly moving river. Someone poured me a goblet of blood, and I drank heavily for the first time in a very long time. The taste was amazing--I swallowed down two or three more goblets before Amethyst stopped me. 

“Your face is turning red.” Amethyst looked up at me, her hands on my knees. She leaned up and kissed me. Her tongue pressed into my waiting mouth. Exploring. She needed this from me; I needed it from her. In the middle of the dining hall, we were surrounded, yet alone. I wrapped my arms around her. She wrapped her arms around me. We were together, so close, so…

Perfect.

***

Rose looked toward the mountains. “If this works, I will be able to see the sunrise for the first time in...forever,” she whispered. Her hand gripped Greg’s as gently as she could. He looked at her, noting her excitement. “It’s been so long...What...what if it burns?”

Smiling, Greg shook his head. “You’re more radiant than a million suns, Rose. I’m sure one little one like this world has won’t hurt you a bit.” Tenderly, he pressed his hand against her cheek. “I love you. I’m...I’m jittering.” Laughing, he pointed to his leg, which was going up and down with nervous excitement. He looked passed her for a moment as Garnet stepped through the brush. “I guess it’s go time.”

Garnet bowed her head. “I am more here to instruct and overlook. There is not much I can actually do--everything depends on the two of you.” With one hand, she pointed to the horizon. “The sun will rise in twelve minutes. Rose must hold your hand and watch it as it comes up.”

“That’s....that’s it?” Greg asked, astounded. “It’s that simple?”

“Well, if I burst into flames, we’ll know that the spell didn’t work,” Rose laughed, though there was fear there. Terrible, deep fear. The sun had been her enemy for so long. Now, she had to face it with the faith that her human love was strong enough to touch her soul, to drag it away from her vampiric nature, to make her human again. She cleared her throat. The sky was slowly becoming brighter. “Greg...please remember, that no matter what happens, I love you with all of my being.”

“I love you too, Rose. So much. More than the universe I was named after.” 

Garnet watched the two kiss as the sun rose over the mountain tops. It touched the two, light washing over them, cleansing them from the darkness of night. 

Rose turned, looking to the sun for the first time in hundreds of lives, and laughed as tears fell down her face.


	20. Blood Like Wine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After watching Greg and Rose sleep, Pearl retreats to the gardens with her own thoughts, only to be interrupted by Garnet. 
> 
> WARNING: Certain parts of this chapter are NSFW.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hello, friends. Sorry it's been so long since I've last posted a chapter. There's just been a mess of things happening in my life. 
> 
> Anyway, as stated in the summary, this chapter is partially NSFW. The next chapter will DEFINITELY be NSFW, so look forward to that.

She never slept during the day again. 

My Rose Quartz, my beautiful, beloved Rose, took to being human again with grace and ease. When I was ready to retire at the dawn, I would hear her laughter from the master’s bedroom above. With Greg, I knew she was happy. With him, I knew she was safe, and loved, and wanted. 

Still, I hurt inside. My own sleep was uneasy; I found myself tossing and turning in my coffin. Amethyst stayed with me during the day, keeping me from trying to go into the dreaded sun just to see Rose. I had never witnessed what the sun did to a vampire, but I had heard tales from Rose. The sun left nothing behind, not even dust. 

So, while my beloved walked the days and dreamed at nights, I dreamed of her in my sleep and pined for her when I was awake. Often, I would slip into their room to watch them sleep. To watch her slumber, her form nestled closely to Greg’s slighter one. 

And, painfully, I watched them age. 

It was small at first--Greg started to lose some of his long hair, specifically atop his head. Rose would find a white hair here or there, planted amongst her curls. Laugh lines formed around lips and eyes. 

It was during one night while I watched the two of them that Greg awoke, seemingly panicked from a dream. He glanced around, blind in the darkness. “Who is there?” he breathed, careful to not awaken Rose. “Pearl?” He called out for me, knowing that I watched over them like a spirit still clinging to life. 

I silently stepped from the shadows, allowing the sliver of moonlight from the window to illuminate my pale face and powder blue eyes. My fangs worried my lips. He looked so fearful--of me?--and he swallowed hard as I made my way to their bed. 

“What is wrong?” I asked. Carefully, I sat beside him, running my fingers through his thinning hair. We had become close--friends, even--and I did care about him as a person. I was a creature of touch; my hands like to feel others, hold others, carefully caress everything. Some found it clingy--specifically Amethyst, though she put up with it--but I believed Greg just assumed it was apart of who I was. 

He swallowed, slowly relaxing. I could hear his heartbeat calm. He put his hand on top of mine, breathing quietly until he worked up the ability to speak. “I had a dream,” he whispered. “Look, Pearl...I don’t know if you know, but Rose and I have been trying for a kid and--”

I bowed my head. “I know,” I said simply. I did not let him know how much that hurt. He was having the life with Rose I could never have. After a moment, I pushed, “Your dream, Greg. What did it tell you?”

Greg wiped at his eyes, nodding. “She...died. Rose died giving birth.”

I sucked in a sharp breath. We both knew it was a possibility. Even though she had survived the transformation back into a human, her body was limited by her Gem. It remained in her core, existing like a second heart. She had been a vampire for so long, had lived in death for so long, that the only way to bring fresh life into the world would be in the act of giving up her Gem. Would she survive that? None of us knew. Perhaps Garnet did, but she refused to tell me. 

Carefully, I brushed my fingers across Greg’s face. “It’s just a dream,” I lied. “Don’t fear for something that has yet to happen.”

“Pearl?” he whispered, looking at me. His eyes held mine for a moment before he turned to look at Rose. “She wants a child so badly. How can I be selfish? How can I tell her no?”

A sad smile formed upon my thin lips. “You can’t. Rose will always do what Rose wishes.” 

Greg nodded, knowing that my words were true. He sighed. “Sorry. For disturbing you, I mean.”

“Does it bother you that I watch you sleep?” I asked. 

He laughed a little, then glanced back at Rose to make sure she didn’t stir from her slumber. “I mean, I was a little creepy at first? But now it’s like a security blanket. And….Um. Thanks for leaving when...you know.” He made a motion with his hands to indicate sex. There was a broad blush across his face, half obscured by a growing beard. 

Another smile upon my face; I leaned in and kissed his forehead. “It’s no problem,” I whispered softly. “Get some sleep, Greg. I think I need a walk in the gardens.” 

“O-okay, Pearl.” He eyed me for a moment, then released his breath. “Good night.”

“Good night, Greg.”

***

The night air was chilled. I was comfortable, despite this, as I wandered the labyrinth of Rose’s gardens. So much had changed since I had first arrived, a freshly freed slave. I had learned how to protect myself and others; I had fought in a war and died. I was brought back to life by the woman I loved, only to have our love fragmented by the man she had learned to love. Then there was Amethyst…

Oh, my beautiful Amethyst!

I craved her so that night. I wanted her lips between my legs, her tongue darting and tasting me as I moaned softly, fingers woven in her pale hair. I thought of her, of her smile, and my knees weakened. I might have lost my beloved Rose Quartz--my Goddess, my queen, my everything--but I still had a woman that loved me. Where was she? 

As I moved through the gardens, I listened. Howling. Ah, yes. I could recognize her voice among the many. She and her pack must have been hunting. Though the moon was not full, they had proper grounds to hunt now, and often took down deer and elk to satisfy their hunger. 

So I was alone. 

Upon this realization, I felt a hand upon my shoulder. I jumped--with my hearing, no one should have been able to sneak up on me--and spun, unsheathing the sword I still wore at my hip with one fluid movement. 

“Be still, Pearl.” Garnet. I lowered my weapon, sighing. She watched me, every movement I made. 

“I didn’t expect you to be out in the gardens,” I said softly. 

“Hmm.” Garnet looked passed me, or perhaps through me. I was never sure as to how she worked, exactly. She was bound up by and with more magic than I could ever comprehend. “Pearl,” she said, at length. “When was the last time you have fed?”

I found myself laughing lightly at her question. “Blood?” I asked, knowing what she had meant. “I only had some at the wedding. Nothing major. You know I really don’t like it.” 

She reached forward, poking the pearl in the middle of my forehead. “Your Gem has grown weak,” she said. That put fear in me. “You would be easy to shatter. Though your Gem contains magic and keeps you alive, it still needs fuel to function. Rose Quartz was able to get away with not feeding because she was worshipped by members of the Vampire Court. They have her life by praying to her, by believing in her.” 

“I’m not going to have some cult follow me around,” I spat. “I’m no Goddess.”

“Nor is Rose.” 

Silence. I looked away from Garnet. For a while, neither of us spoke. Then, shakily, I asked her, “Is Rose going to die if she has a child?”

Garnet folded her arms over her bosom. “You know I can’t tell you the future, Pearl. There are too many paths.”

I clenched my hands at my sides. Part of me wanted to take my sword to her, but that was only the anger speaking. I could never harm Garnet. She was a close friend--and, sometimes, more, even if I was the only one that felt that way. Her feelings toward me were a mystery. 

“You need to drink blood,” Garnet said, reverting to our previous conversation. “Even if you dislike the act, you need the nutrients and life to keep yourself going.” 

I turned away from her, looking at a particularly red group of roses. “And from whom do you expect me to drink? This isn’t the afterglow of the war. Humans aren’t lining up to bare their throats for me to glut from.” 

A smile spread across her face; I looked at her, noticing it. “There’s always me.”

I must have looked horrified at the thought, because she put up her Gem-encrusted hands and sighed. “Listen to my reasoning before you say no. I am a creature of magic, Pearl. Though I have Gems of my own, I am self-sustaining. I can live forever because I am made of love--the love of Ruby and Sapphire. Their souls fuel me.” It was too much for me to wrap my head around, but she continued. “No human would have to be in danger. Just a little bit of my blood would be enough to keep you going for another century.” 

“A-are you sure?” I whispered. I found myself licking my lips. My fangs pressed into my bottom lip, ready and willing to tear flesh so I might sup upon the delicious blood of my friend. 

Garnet smiled again, and reached for me. I found myself pressed against her warm chest, holding onto her body. She guided me to one of the stone benches nearby. I sat on her ample lap as she tipped her head to the side so I had easy access to her throat. 

Carefully, I started by licking her skin. My tongue ran over some of her stitching. I paused. “You aren’t going to...fall apart?” I asked, worried.

“Have I yet?” she countered. “Drink, Pearl.”

With a nod, I continued. My tongue lapped at her smooth, hot skin. Slowly, I dug my small fangs into her flesh. A moan escaped me. A spurt of blood flew into my mouth, filling it. I had to swallow hard to keep it from spilling out. 

The wind around us blew hard. Garnet tucked me closer to her as I drank, her hand cradling my head. At the same time, I realized she was holding me there, forcing me to nurse. I had no choice but to drink at that point in time. 

And I needed it. 

My arm reached over her shoulder in a sort of hug. I held her as tightly to me as she held me to herself. We intertwined, and suddenly, my thoughts from earlier of Amethyst shifted slightly. Garnet. The thought of touching her intimately, of holding her, of nuzzling my nose against her sex…

I bucked my hips slightly, moaning again as I drank from her. Instantly, I blushed, fearful that she would throw me away in disgust. To my surprise, she held me tighter to her body. Her free hand moved so it was between my legs. I jerked at the touch, feeling wet down there. 

Garnet smiled. 

Finally, she released my head. I fell back against her arm, gasping. Blood still trickled from my bite marks upon her throat. I whimpered, half yearning to go back to suckling and half needing her in other ways. Ways I had only ever had Amethyst or Rose for. 

“Do you want me?” she whispered.

I swallowed, and whispered back, “Yes.”


	21. In a Bed of Violets

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> NSFW chapter. Garnet helps Pearl out in a way she never knew she needed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Sorry for the length between updates. I had a really hard time with this chapter, as I wanted to write something that was true to the feeling of the overall story, but I also wanted to get some Pearlnet into the plot. Though this might not have ended up as grand as I had opened, I sincerely hope you all enjoy the chapter. 
> 
> Please note that this chapter is NOT SAFE FOR WORK. 
> 
> I am hoping to finish this fiction sometime in October, hopefully around Halloween. Thank you for all of your kind comments! I really appreciate everyone taking an interest in this story. Like I've said before, it's really a labor of love.

We hid ourselves in the thick of the gardens, finding comfort in each other beneath a cherry tree in full bloom. Rose’s garden was magic like that; no matter the season, the flowers were always fresh and alive. Garnet pushed me down gently in a bed of violets before topping me with her body. 

She kissed me, just under my chin, and I moaned. I felt her tear my clothing, tear hers away as well. We nuzzled each other, completely nude, bared to each other tenderly. I felt dizzy and drunk off of Garnet; I wanted her more than I had ever wanted her before. I was wet between my legs, and after rubbing my knee against her sex, I found her to be wet as well. 

Garnet began to push my legs apart with her hands. I whimpered a little, shivering. I was not cold, no, but excited. The moment she pressed her lips against my sex, I simply lost it. My back arched up, allowing her a better expanse of my body. Her tongue darted dangerously into my folds, lapping up my wetness. Her fingers followed, playing me like a piano as she pushed in deeper, deeper, deeper. My entire body was aflame with passion as the stitched-together woman explored every ounce of my body. 

I cried out her name. “Garnet,” I said, my fingers curling into her thick hair. I held her there, just at my opening. “Please, stop torturing me!” 

She smiled at me. “Alright,” she whispered. Then she plunged her tongue against my clitoris. Licking and lapping, she sneaked her fingers into my opening, pressing and pushing with enough force to make me moan out. I wrapped my slender legs around her, holding her in place as my body spasmed along with her movements. “There,” she breathed, bringing herself up for a little bit of air. She laid kisses along my pelvis as I shivered and moaned while her fingers continued to move inside of me. “You need this, Pearl. You need this more than you know.” 

I nodded, tears running down my face as she leaned down to lick and lap at me again. A wail began to build up, deep down inside of my body. I could feel a tightness growing in my abdomen, making me tingle and grown as it drew up into my throat. A orgasm was close...so close, painfully close. I wanted it, yet Garnet was stringing me along, making the build up grow and stretch. 

“Please, I begged, my voice sounding far away. “Please, Garnet, stop teasing me!”

She smirked, lips lopsided as she looked up at me. “Oh, no. Not yet,” she breathed. She continued to work me, pressing, pushing and licking, but never letting me come. I wanted to scream, but she was completely in control. 

“Why,” I begged. “Why….”

Without answering me, Garnet nibbled a little on my tender spots, making my body jerk and dance beneath her. Her fingers were still deep inside of me, moving and wriggling like snakes. I cried out, finally unable to take it anymore. 

My own hands moved, tenderly tracing down my body. I pushed her lips away, my fingers touching the most delicate part of my being. The bundle of nerves welcomed me as I brought myself to orgasm. 

Garnet was smart enough to cover my mouth with her hand so that none of my moans could escape into the night air. Even though no one else was about, my moans and cries might have drifted to the open window of Rose and Greg’s room above us. I could smell my wetness on her fingers. Though I was spent, I continued to crave her. 

Finally, once I was finished verbally and still quivering slightly internally, I pushed Garnet back against the flowers. All three of her eyes looked up at me with slight confusion. I smiled. “Did you honestly expect me to take everything for myself?” I breathed. “I want to make you scream my name, Garnet. I want you to have what you have given me.” 

“Pearl,” she said, voice more even than I expected. “No. I’m sorry. This was for you.”

The smile fled from my face. “But...why? Why won’t you let me do for you what you’ve done for me?” 

Gently, she reached up and touched the side of my face. “I love myself,” she whispered softly. “Call me greedy, perhaps. You...you have enough love for everyone you come across. Perhaps you do not realize it. Pearl, you are a beautiful creature, and I am glad to call you my friend.”

I listened to her words. “You don’t want me,” I whispered, pulling back. 

“No. It isn’t that. It’s...I don’t want to lead you on.” Garnet sighed. She leaned in, kissing my forehead, just below my pearl. “Rose loves you. You love her. Amethyst loves you, and you love her. I love you in a different way. I will always love you, Pearl, but not in this way. This is the only time I will touch you like this.” 

I felt as though I had been slapped across the face. After such pleasure, after her touch...she was rejecting me. I nodded slightly. “I think I understand,” I whispered. “I’m not enough for you.”

“No, Pearl. Please. Please, understand. I am made of love. I have love for you, I do. But I know you will find your true love, your own and only, eventualy.” 

Confusion must have shown on my face. “I love Rose. I love Amethyst, and you…”

With a deep sigh, Garnet shook her head. “There is a future I see...I see your happiness. There is much pain, true, but in the end… Your heart will be full.” 

“I don’t understand.” I took a deep breath, laying my hands in my lap. “But I trust you.”

“That’s all I ask.” 

With that, Garnet stood. I looked up at her, her head haloed by the moon above. Her skin glistened with a slight sheen of sweat. I soaked her up, took her in. She was so beautiful, and, for a short time, she had been mine. I suppose that was all I could ask of her. “Thank you, Garnet,” I said, but she was already gone.

I looked around for my clothing. I took my time redressing, aching in ways I had not felt in a long time. Tenderly, I made my way back into the castle. Dawn was approaching, and quickly. It was time to sleep. 

That day, I dreamt of Garnet’s lips pressed tightly against mine, just for a moment, and a little boy whose hand I held tightly as we watched the moon, high in the sky. There was a son upon the mystery boy’s lips, and a smile on his face. 

Who was he?


	22. Until My Dying Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A bittersweet moment of life and death, love and birth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Here it is. The almost end. There is at least one more chapter to go after this, and it's going to be a long one. I wanted to thank everyone who has written comments to me. I really appreciate everything that everyone has said. I'm so happy I could share this story with all of you. It just...means so much to me. Honestly. Thank you.

Months passed by in a blur of life. The seasons changed, nature every shifting outside of the magic barrier of the garden. Rose and Greg stood in that garden, hand in hand. The sun was warm above them, the light of it trickling down between the leaves of the trees. Rose Quartz reached up into one of the peach trees, plucking a plump fruit from one of the branches. She smiled at Greg, offering it to him. 

“Hey, thanks,” he said, taking it. He bit into the ripe flesh, then offered it back to Rose. “Here, you should enjoy this, too.” Greg pressed it to her lips. They laughed a little, both wet with peach juice. “How do you feel?” 

After devouring the rest of the peach, Rose put her hands on her slightly swollen belly. Her eyes softened. “He’s fluttered a few times today. He knows the sound of your voice.”

Greg tenderly put his hands over hers. “How are you so sure it’s going to be a boy?” he asked, raising an eyebrow. “We could end up having a pretty little girl.” Then he paused, and shook his head. “Ah. Garnet again?” 

“Yes,” Rose laughed. “We should start thinking of a name.” Her eyes and cheeks glowed like stars as she smiled. She moved her hands so she was now holding Greg’s. Looking down upon him, she looked like she had all of the love in the world for him in her eyes. 

He wanted to smile back at her. He wanted to be happy, to be the proud father. But, deep down, he remembered the worry. The fear. He could lose Rose because of this child. The world wouldn’t think less of him if he automatically hated the child for taking his love away from him. Yet...he loved that child growing inside of her. He loved him more than anything else, perhaps even more than Rose. 

If only he could have both of them, together. If only that would happen...He simply had to have hope. Gently, he squeezed Rose’s hands, and smiled up at her. “I love you,” he said. “I love you so much, Rose.” 

“And I, you, Greg.” 

They leaned in together, meeting in a kiss. 

***

The organ’s keys felt cold beneath my fingers. I touched the ivory things, soaking them in as I played the instrument. The sound echoed throughout the castle. The music room shook slightly as I continued to play. My eyes were closed; I ignored everything else around me. 

Rose and Greg were gone for the moment. They had left for a few days to see a midwife in the nearby village, and to learn a little more about being parents. I was left in charge of the castle (though both Garnet and Amethyst remained to keep me company). In their absence, I stalked the building, room to room. I spent some time in the library, some in the gardens, some in the music room. Amethyst followed me about like a little loyal pup. 

The last notes of the piece lingered in the room, finally dying upon the air. Amethyst howled, shaking me from my thoughts. “What was that for?” I squawked, startled by the sound. 

She only laughed. “Heh. You’re moping. You miss Rose and Greg.”

Sniffing, I turned back to the organ. “I thought that was obvious.” 

With a yawn, the werewolf stood up from her seat on the floor. “I just thought I’d add my own little piece to your… ‘music.’ It’s so lame, Pearl. Can’t you, I dunno. Play something more exciting? Something happier?”

I sighed, standing from my seat. “I don’t think I know any happy pieces,” I grumbled. 

Amethyst took my hand, kissing each of my knuckles, one by one. Then she looked up at me. Surprised at the display of affection, my lips parted. “Hey,” she said, grinning again. With her free hand, she reached up and touched my cheek. “Why don’t you sing something, then? You got a gorgeous voice. I love it when you sing.” 

“O...oh,” I mumbled. A blush came to my face. “No. I don’t sing.”

She looked confused. “Sure you do. When you’re in the bath--”

“No. I mean...I only sing for Rose.” 

Amethyst let go of my hand and stopped touching me all together. She withdrew, a snarl upon her lips. “Even after all of this time,” she snapped, a growl in her voice, “you still think Rose loves you like that? She’s with Greg. Wake up! We...we weren’t enough for her.” 

Blinking, I looked down at Amethyst with surprise in my eyes. “We?” I asked quizzically. “You love her as well?”

“Duh,” Amethyst snapped. She looked away from me, rubbing her arms as though cold. There was a slight chill in the castle, but nothing neither of us were not able to handle. I longed to reach out, to touch her just a bit. I steadied my hands and forced them into my pockets. “It’s not like your love for her. I respect her. I...I love her like a sister, I guess. One I never had. Sure, sure, I have my pack, but you, and Rose...and even Greg and Garnet...you guys are my world. You’re my everything. Especially you. I just want you to wake up from this dream you’re in! Rose ain’t gonna love you the way you want her to. Not anymore. And...man. Man, P! She’s got a kid on the way. You think she’ll have time for us?” 

My hands were shaking in my pockets. I swallowed, but it was pointless. I felt like a fish fighting in an uphill stream. Gasping. Dizzy, I leaned back against the organ. My back pressed into the keys, forcing the instrument to release an array of clashing noises. 

Amethyst ran a hand through her hair, pausing for a moment to scratch at the wolf ears perched atop her head. She plucked a flea out of her fur and crushed it between her claws. “I’m sorry, Pearl. I...Just want us all to be happy. But it ain’t gonna happen. Someone’s going to get hurt, in the end.” 

“No,” I whispered. “I don’t believe that. Everything will be fine.” 

She looked up at me with those dark eyes. “Do you really believe that, P?” she asked. “Do you?”

***

Rose went into labor suddenly. 

She had been feeling ill for a few days before it happened. We all took turns caring for her--making her broth to drink since her stomach was too upset to deal with anything else, gently wiping her hot brow with a cool cloth, changing her sheets to make her more comfortable...The list went on. Greg asked to be alone with her for a day, and the rest of us had no choice but to allow it. 

After that, Rose took a turn for the better. She seemed bright and cheerful and healthy. That’s why, when her water broke and her screams echoed through the castle, we were all caught off guard. 

She and Greg were in the library, just reading before bed. I was barely awake when it happened. Her screams woke me, and I rushed to her air. Amethyst and Greg were holding her hands, looks of terror and fear on their faces. Garnet left the moment she saw me, claiming she was she was the fastest of us and could fetch the midwife in record time with her magic. 

I had to pray that she was right. 

I found myself beside Rose, gently whispering to her that things would be alright, that her little son was going to come into the world, that everything was beautiful. Lies. I knew it all to be lies. The moment we brought Rose’s dress up over her hips, I caught a glance of the gem in her belly. It was shimmering slightly, alive again, and draining the life from her as it worked to push life into her unborn child. 

Rose cried out, ripping my attention away from what I saw. “Ahh!” she cried. “I have to...I need to push…”

Greg was pale. He held her hand, kissing her knuckles as she whimpered. “Just...just wait. It can’t happen now. We need the midwife! I don’t know how to deliver a baby!” 

“I saw the alpha give birth once,” Amethyst whimpered. Her ears were flat against her head. “Um. Okay. I think I can talk her through it.” 

“No need,” Garnet said, throwing open the door to the library. A wizened old woman followed her into the room. “Everyone, out. Greg, you may stay. And Pearl.” 

My tongue felt like stone in my mouth. I nodded, watching as Garnet lead Amethyst out into the hall. I shared a look with Greg over the swell of Rose’s stomach. We nodded, continuing to hold tightly onto Rose’s hands. 

The midwife coached Rose in ways I never thought possible. I watched as, inch by inch, the small form of a baby boy slipped through Rose’s opening and into the candle light. He sobbed upon touching air for the first time, tears rolling down his innocent face. She held him up, allowing Greg to cut his umbilical cord before she took the little bundle away to be scrubbed up. 

Greg and I both turned to Rose. She looked skyward, tears streaming down her face. “He had...a gem,” she breathed, sucking in air wetly through her mouth. “Like me...It…” She had trouble speaking. Gently, I touched the side of her face. She was cool to the touch. 

“Rose?” Greg whimpered, holding her pale hands against his cheek. “You’re going to be okay, right?”

A faint smile graced her face, just for a moment. “Steven?” she questioned. “Where did he go?”

“The midwife--” I started, then stalled. Tears began to sting my eyes. I realized she could no longer see. I peeked down at her stomach, watching as her own gem cracked. It shattered, leaving hot marks on her skin. When I looked into her eyes again, those darling, black-as-night eyes, she was gone. 

Rose Quartz died giving birth to her son, Steven Quartz Universe. 

***

We buried her the next night in her garden. ALl of the flowers and other plants had already started to droop without her. I sobbed, unable to stop the tears from flowing out of my pale blue eyes. Greg held my hand as we both laid pink roses upon her grave. Amethyst held Steven, then passed him to me so she could say her goodbyes. Garnet remained in the shadow of a willow, watching from afar. 

I looked down at Steven, just this tiny bundle of chubby belly and rosy cheeks. I passed him off to his father, then walked away into the castle. I simply could not look at the child and forget Rose. I saw her in him; in his eyes, in his little baby smile. Even in the tiny sounds he made...everything reminded me of her. 

I wept. I felt lost, and empty. 

For the first time in my life, I wanted to see the sun rise, if only so it could burn me to dust. 

My Rose, my sweet, beautiful Rose Quartz, was gone forever. My love, my life...I was so shattered! I wept until my eyes burned. Somehow, I had found myself in her bedroom--the one she shared with Greg. She was all around me--her scent, the feeling of her. I dropped to the floor, pounding on the wood until my hands bled and the flooring splintered. Every inch of me was confused. I wanted to hurt, yet I wanted to be held. 

I felt utterly alone. 

Hours must have passed by in a blur of emotion. When I came to, Greg was standing over me. His eyes looked hollow and warn; there were more white hairs in his beard and hair than I had noticed before. In his arms was the child--her child. The last thing that remained of my beloved Rose. 

“It’s almost morning,” Greg said hoarsely. “You need to get into your coffin.” 

Swallowing, I shook my head. I felt too limp to speak, to get up. 

“Please, Pearl. I can’t...I can’t lose both of you.” 

On shaky legs, I finally stood up. I looked at Greg. “She’s...gone,” I breathed, then broke down in tears once more. He moved closer to me, hugging me with one arm while his other held Steven. I looked at the tiny child, that baby, and whimpered. “She was right. He has her gem.” 

Greg nodded a little. “I don’t know what it means. She...she was human, right? I mean, Garnet’s spell worked. So why does Steven--”

“It must be because a small part of her, deep down, was still fueled by magic. I...I don’t fully understand it myself. Perhaps Garnet…” My voice trailed off. I looked at the baby, so innocent and nestled down into the crook of his father’s arm. “May I hold him? Just for a moment.” 

“Of course.” Greg gently passed the child to me. I held him in my arms, nuzzling my nose along his tender cheek. 

“Hello,” I breathed softly. “Welcome to the world, Steven.” Though I wept as I held him, I could feel a soft, gentle breath of hope swell up in my chest. This child was what remained of my beloved Rose Quartz. 

And I would protect and love him until my dying day.


	23. Steven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The End.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I made a promise that I would finish this fiction on or before Halloween. I did! :D I thought the ending would be much longer, but after some thought, I think finishing it up like this is for the best. The focus of the tale was never Steven, after all, but Pearl's love for Rose Quartz. 
> 
> I would like to thank everyone who has supported me through this fiction. It's been a lot of fun, and I've really loved every moment of it. I'm going to miss writing this, and thinking of it. I'm sort of sad that it's over, honestly. 
> 
> To everyone who commented and gave me kudos, thank you! You really helped to push me on and make this story what it is. I'd also like to thank my girlfriend, who got me into Steven Universe, as well as dedicate this to my friend Casey, who passed away at the beginning of the year. You were the best Rose Quartz cosplayer ever. 
> 
> Finally, I would like to say that, although this is the end of this story, this is not the end of my writing. I have many ideas for future stories, both fan fictions and original works. I hope you all enjoy what I come up with in the future. :)

Amethyst began her night by howling at the moon with the rest of her pack. It was full and round in the sky, and beautiful beyond words. I listened to the long, lonely sound echo off of the mountains around us from where I sat. Garnet, beside me, had a soft smile upon her face. 

 

The werewolves’ hunt had gone well. The deer were fat in this area of the forest, at, at this time of year, had not yet met with the hungers of winter. They had taken down enough of them to feed the growing pack. The nourishment was good for the pups who had just started to eat meat. Growling and laughing, they glutted themselves on the deer as their parents and guardians howled into the night. 

 

Steven walked among them, laughing as a few of them paused to lick his face or wrestle with him. I watched him like a hawk; I refused to take my blue eyes off of him, even though I knew the werewolves would never harm him. Faintly, in the darkness of night, I saw his gem glow from beneath his shirt. 

 

The vampire within him was growing. 

 

It had hurt, at first, for him and for us. Greg did not know what to do with him; he had stopped aging all together, looking closer to eight or so than the teenager he had become. Slowly, his fangs had come in, and he awoke at night sobbing because his stomach hurt. It was a craving for blood that kept him awake, but the child was too gentle to suckle from anyone or anything’s neck. Eventually, Greg had resorted to slipping blood from the butcher’s shop in with his soup to keep him from starving. 

 

Then, suddenly, he couldn’t even stomach soup. 

 

I remember the night well. Greg had come to me, having previously moved away from the castle, unable to stand living where Rose Quartz had once lived and laughed. He took to staying in town, in a purchased carriage that was just large enough for himself and Steven to sleep in. They spent their days at the inn, where Greg performed as a bard for the crowds. 

 

Steven was asleep when Greg spoke to me. There was such worry and fear in his eyes when he opened his mouth and said, softly, “He won’t eat anything anymore. I can’t get him to even drink tea. I don’t know what to do! Please, Pearl...you have to help. I can’t lose him, too.” 

 

My eyes glanced over at the child. The light from the oil lamps cast shadows over him, and, briefly, his face looked like his mother’s. I bit my bottom lip, worrying it with my teeth until it bled. Upon noticing it, I wiped the blood away with the back of my hand. 

 

“I doubt there is much I can do by myself,” I said at length. “However, Garnet might have an idea…” 

 

And so it was that Steven came to live in the castle that his mother had once roamed. It was easier for him to rest during the day here, where there were plenty of dark spaces for him to find. Garnet and I eased him into drinking blood, undisguised by soup or tea, though he still did not like the idea of sipping on something that had once flowed through the body of another. He was a gentle soul--perhaps too gentle. Still, I loved him, and would not have traded him for a thing. 

 

Now, we were gathered with the werewolves until Amethyst had finished eating. Once she had, she said her goodbyes to her pack for the night, and followed us back to the castle. 

 

I held his hand in my own, smiling briefly down at him as we walked. It was nearly midnight, though he was wide awake. Soon, I thought, he would not be able to stand the sun. Or would he? It was impossible to tell. As far as we knew, he was the only child of a vampire-turned-human to have survived birth. 

 

“Hey, Pearl?” Steven asked suddenly, hanging back from Garnet and Amethyst. 

 

“Yes, Steven?” I asked, looking at him again. His face bunched up in a bit of a frown. I could tell that he was thinking, hard, about something. Perhaps something that he did not wish to ask. 

 

Finally, he sighed, and asked, “What was my mom like?” 

 

My breath caught in my throat. Carefully, I knelt down beside him, kissing his forehead. “Let me tell you a story, Steven…” I started. “Let me tell you a story.” 

 

The End


End file.
